Warriors trade Former All Star David Lee to Boston

Photo Credit: USA Today Sports

In a deal that has been rumored to take place ever since the final buzzer sounded, newfound World Champion David Lee has been traded. On a busy NBA free agency Tuesday, the Golden State Warriors have traded former two-time All-Star David Lee to the Boston Celtics for fellow forward Gerald Wallace and a player to be named later.

This deal makes sense for both teams for multiple reasons. First the Warriors clear almost $5 million in cap space, (David Lee’s 15.5 mill. vs. Wallace’s 10.1), just in case they want to make another move in the near future.

Yahoo’s Marc Spears reported that Golden State is planning to use the stretch provision on Wallace’s contract so his contract won’t hit the Warriors cap that much for this current season. Former Brooklyn Nets Assistant GM Bobby Marks tweeted that Golden State would only pay Wallace around $3.3 million over the next three seasons and noted it saves them a good amount in tax costs.

Ultimately, the Warriors didn’t want to have a player making $15.5 million a year sitting on the bench with limited minutes.

This makes sense for the Celtics because they need more interior scoring; mostly the big men they have been using play outside the paint, such as Jared Sullinger, Kelly Olynyk, and ex-Celt Brandon Bass. Lee will provide a veteran presence in a locker-room learning to win and with the addition of Amir Johnson, the Celtics frontcourt is looking better and should be in playoff contention once again in the easier Eastern Conference.

Lee is only on the books for one more year, so the 32 year-old will be motivated to show the whole league that he still has good production left in the tank. Last year, Lee only played 49 games, averaging just 18 per minutes per night. He managed to average 7.9 points and 5.2 rebounds per game and was a key factor in the last four games of the NBA Finals.