The NBA’s second apron is, essentially, a hard salary cap of $207,825,000.
The restrictions, which impact a team’s ability to operate in the draft, free-agency and trade markets, are so punitive from a roster-building standpoint that it makes little sense to spend above the limit. It is even worse if a team spends into the second apron in consecutive years, as luxury-tax penalties only increase.
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Which brings us to the Boston Celtics, whose player salaries exceeded the second apron this past season, as they pursued a repeat championship. That quest fell short in the second round of the playoffs, as their superstar, Jayson Tatum, ruptured his right Achilles’ tendon. That combination of events, which also affects their ability to contend next season as Tatum recovers, signaled several cost-cutting measures.
Between salary and luxury taxes, the Celtics were on pace to spend almost $500 million in payroll for next season. That was untenable, especially for a team that no longer feels like a legit title contender. Boston’s new owner, Bill Chisholm, does not want to lose money on the team he just bought for $6 billion.
So, on Monday night, the Celtics traded two-time All-Star and two-time champion Jrue Holiday — an invaluable member of their 2024 title team — for Anfernee Simons and two second-round draft picks.
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And, on Tuesday night, Boston dealt Kristaps Porziņģis to the Atlanta Hawks in a three-team trade that returned Massachusetts native Georges Niang. Some second-round picks were swapped in the process.
Simons is entering the final season of the four-year, $100 million contract he signed in the summer of 2022, which will pay him $27.7 million next season. While that is only $4.7 million less than the $32.4 million Holiday is owed for the 2025-26 campaign, it will save Boston roughly another $35 million in luxury taxes. The Celtics are also off the hook for the $72 million Holiday is owed in 2026-27 and 2027-28.
Likewise, Niang is entering the last season of a three-year, $25 million deal. He is slated to make $8.2 million next season, $22.5 million less than the $30.7 million expiring deal Porziņģis is on next season. More importantly, Boston will save almost $150 million in additional luxury taxes.
The Celtics will save $27.2 million in salary and roughly $180 million in luxury taxes — or more than $200 million. Now you begin to see why the Celtics are cutting costs. Every dollar cut is exponential savings.
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It is no coincidence that Boston is now $4.5 million under the second apron. That was the plan all along.
So, is Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens’ work done? Far from it. Big men Al Horford and Luke Kornet are free agents, and re-signing them would take Boston back above the second apron.
Do not be surprised if Sam Hauser’s four-year, $45 million contract extension is moved; do not be surprised if Simons and/or Niang never play a game in a Celtics uniform; do not be surprised if anyone but Tatum is mentioned in trade rumors. This is not what the Celtics’ roster will look like in October.
Which begs the question: Would the Celtics really trade Jaylen Brown or Derrick White, who, along with Tatum, form the foundation of a serious championship contender for the 2026-27 season? After all, the combination of Tatum and Brown has translated to a handful of Eastern Conference finals appearances.
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It would take a monumental offer — one that also better positions the Celtics to contend in 2027 — to persuade the Celtics to part with either Brown or White, and that return package is not easy to attain.
More likely, as we saw with the acquisition of Simons, Boston will peel off ancillary parts while trying to maintain a competitive roster. Simons has averaged 20 points (on 44/38/90 shooting splits), 4.5 assists and 2.8 rebounds over the past four seasons, though he is not the defensive stalwart Holiday is.
Niang, well, he is a serviceable stretch forward who has shot 40% from 3-point range for his career.
But it is hard to talk about what exactly the Holiday and Porziņģis trades will mean on the court for the Celtics, as not even Simons is guaranteed to stay. Just know this week’s moves were the first of many this summer for the Celtics, who will spend the entire offseason reconfiguring a more affordable payroll.
BOSTON (WHDH) – Police are investigating a shooting in Downtown Crossing that occurred Thursday night.
Officials said the shooting occurred around 10:30 p.m. near Tremont and Temple Streets.
When officers arrived on scene, they found a man with a gunshot wound; he is expected to survive.
Police have not said if any arrests have been made.
(Copyright (c) 2026 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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An East Boston father is suing ICE, alleging immigration agents unlawfully stopped, arrested, and detained him because of his race and national origin despite having his legal status, his lawyers said.
Lawyers for Civil Rights filed the lawsuit Thursday on behalf of Jose Pineda, a 62-year-old Salvadoran immigrant who has lived in the U.S. for more than three decades and is authorized to remain and work through humanitarian relief, the nonprofit legal organization said in a press release.
The suit is seeking damages under the Federal Tort Claims Act, alleging false arrest, false imprisonment, assault, and severe emotional distress.
“I came to the United States to escape the civil war that devastated El Salvador. I worked hard, started a family, and built a life here,” said Pineda, who works as a landscaper and lives with his wife and 13-year-old daughter. “I never expected to feel that kind of fear again, much less in the United States.”
According to the 30-page complaint, written by LCR senior attorneys Victoria Miranda and Mirian Albert, Pineda has been a recipient of Temporary Protected Status, which allows certain foreign nationals from designated countries to live and work legally in the U.S.
Pineda also had a pending asylum petition and had been granted a T visa, which provides immigration protections to trafficking victims, the complaint states.
“We will not stand idly by as ICE wreaks havoc on immigrant families. Through racial profiling, ICE agents are carrying out an unquestionably discriminatory agenda,” Miranda said in the release. “The law exists to protect people like Mr. Pineda, and it must be enforced against ICE.”
The lawsuit stems from a May 2025 encounter in Weymouth, where Pineda was driving a landscaping truck to a job site when agents in unmarked ICE vehicles surrounded him, according to the complaint.
“The aggressive nature of the questioning made it clear to Mr. Pineda that he was not being judged based on any evidence of unlawful conduct, but rather on his identity, race, ethnicity, and/or national origin,” Pineda’s attorneys wrote.
The lawsuit alleges ICE officers then “forcibly” handcuffed and shackled Pineda before taking him to the agency’s field office in Burlington.
Officers searched Pineda’s belongings during the stop and again at the field office, allegedly confiscating $600 in cash that he intended to use to pay his family’s rent. The money has not been returned, according to the complaint.
Pineda spent two days in ICE custody under what the lawsuit describes as “cruel and inhumane conditions.”
“After what ICE did to me, and after everything my family has endured, I don’t know if I will ever truly feel safe again,” Pineda said.
According to the complaint, he was held in severely overcrowded cells containing more than 40 people — at times as many as 60 — leaving little room to sit and forcing him to remain standing for much of his detention. Detainees also allegedly shared a single toilet and sink without soap or toilet paper and were not provided toothbrushes, clean clothes, or showers.
Fluorescent lights remained on around the clock, making it difficult to sleep, while temperatures became “extremely cold” overnight and some detainees received only aluminum blanekts for warmth, the complaint states.
Pineda was given only a two-minute phone call during his detention and received two bottles of water each day, along with “inadequate and limited” food and water, according to the complaint.
“Mr. Pineda has suffered devastating and ongoing physical and emotional harm that has impacted all aspects of his life,” his attorneys wrote. “Mr. Pineda brings this action to seek accountability for these violent and traumatizing tortious acts of the ICE officers and to address the harms inflicted upon him.”
According to LCR, Pineda was released following advocacy by Centro Presente, a Massachusetts immigrant rights organization.
After his release, ICE initiated removal proceedings against him depsite his humanitarian protections, the organization said. Those proceedings were ultimately dismissed.
“ICE targeted Mr. Pineda based on nothing more than his perceived national origin and the nature of his work,” Albert said in the press release. “Our laws prohibit this kind of arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement. Through this lawsuit, we seek to hold the federal government accountable for the violence and harm inflicted on Mr. Pineda.”
ICE referred questions about the lawsuit to the Department of Homeland Security. DHS did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday evening.
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BOSTON (WHDH) – A pedestrian was hit and killed in Roxbury Thursday morning.
The collision occurred just before 8:20 a.m. on Tremont Street.
Police said Tremont Street was closed in both directions between Brigham Circle and Roxbury Crossing.
This is a developing news story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest details.
(Copyright (c) 2026 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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