Torrey Craig was only with the Boston Celtics for half a season after signing with the franchise in February.
And the veteran forward wouldn’t mind sticking around with the Celtics longer.
Craig, 34, is one of three Celtics players — Al Horford and Luke Kornet being the other two — about to hit unrestricted free agency this summer. The Celtics are expected to do a lot of maneuvering this offseason to slash their payroll, and if a spot opens up on the roster do to that, Craig wanted it known that he wants back with the team.
“I love everything about Boston,” Craig told CelticsBlog’s Noa Dalzell. “If it was available, then I would see myself coming back.”
Craig didn’t exactly make a strong impression this season with the Celtics. He was usually out of Joe Mazzulla’s rotation and when he did get minutes, he didn’t do much with them.
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Craig averaged 2.7 points and 2.8 rebounds in the 17 regular-season games he appeared in with Boston. The 6-foot-7, 221-pound forward notched his best performance in a win over the Philadelphia 76ers in early March when he scored 12 points and grabbed four rebounds.
But Craig didn’t do anything really notable, except be a strong sideline presence cheering on his teammates. Either way, Craig still found this past season with the Celtics to be worthwhile.
“Just being around the guys that previously won the championship — just seeing how they operate, how together they were, just being a part of the Celtic culture,” Craig said. “That was a cool experience for me.”
The one thing Craig has going for him to return to the Celtics is that he should be a pretty cheap bench option. And perhaps given more regular playing time, he could contribute more. He’s not a lights-out shooter, but has shot a solid 35.4% from beyond the arc over his career.
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And he’s confident that the Celtics can still be a contending team next season even with Jayson Tatum expected to miss a majority of the season after he ruptured his Achilles.
“It’s a great group of guys, obviously, the situation matters, but I feel like even without JT, this team could still compete for a championship,” Craig said. “They’re talented. You just have to find a way to play basketball a little differently. But this group is way more capable. I have the utmost confidence.”
