Celtics could get away with standing pat this offseason

The team enters the NBA Draft on Thursday night with one of the best starting lineups in the league with the return of Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward.

They will gather in a meeting room in a new building next to the Massachusetts Turnpike tonight and make the first move of the offseason.

 Twenty-five days after the Celtics’ surprising run to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals came to an end, they will be taking care of the first piece of business for the 2018-19 season at the NBA Draft.

 Barring a trade, the Celtics will be making the 27th pick shortly before 10 p.m., their latest opening-round selection in a decade.

 The player chosen by the Celtics will probably be spending a lot of time with the Maine Red Claws of the NBA G-League next winter or play in Europe because of the fact that the team’s rotation lacks openings.

 So tonight’s draft -- the first pick is scheduled to be made around 7:30 on ESPN -- figures to be just one small step in the Celtics’ offseason.

 And after going so deep into the playoffs with a roster that was minus all-stars Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward, the Celtics are probably going to make a few small tweaks throughout the summer months.

 Already in the days leading up to the draft, the Celtics have been linked to free-agent-to-be LeBron James, Kawhi Leonard and some of the top lottery picks.

 Forget about all those crazy James rumors that have him planning to meet with the Celtics next month after the free agency process begins.

 As for Leonard, who is unhappy with the San Antonio Spurs, it looks as if he could be on the move before hitting the free-agent mark in the summer of 2019, and he would be quite an addition to the Celtics.

 But Leonard is apparently making it known that he wants to eventually sign with a team in Los Angeles, which is not far from his hometown in southern California.

 Giving up a player such as Jaylen Brown for potentially just one season of Leonard would be a mistake since the Celtics have a one-two punch of the 21-year-old Brown and 20-year-old Jayson Tatum set up for the future.

 And then there is Irving, who will also be a free agent a year from now when he opts out of the final year of his contract.

 So much was made of the fact that Irving said last week that he won’t be signing an extension to stay with the Celtics this summer.

 If Irving would agree to settle his contract before next season, he would receive $108 million on a four-year deal, but by waiting until next summer, he would get $188 million for five seasons.

 There is a lot of worrying going on already about the future of Irving, but if the Celtics made a strong bid at a championship next spring with a talent loaded with young talent, it would be hard for him to walk away and leave money on the table.

 Following the draft, the Celtics will begin preparing for their trip to Las Vegas for the summer league, and free agency starts a week from Sunday.

 The biggest decision the Celtics will be making there is the status of Marcus Smart, a restricted free agent after four seasons in Boston.

 The team can match any offer the guard receives and will likely do so unless he gets a surprising deal from another team.

 At his youth basketball camp at Waltham on Wednesday, Smart told reporters he is focused on his mother, Camellia, who is undergoing treatment for cancer in Texas.

 Asked if he thought he’d be back with the Celtics next season, Smart replied, “To be honest, I do. I haven’t really put too much thought into the offseason free agency thing. My No. 1 focus is on my family right now. I got a lot of stuff going on with my mom. She needs all the positive thinking.”

 A year ago, the Celtics overhauled their roster after getting to the conference finals, bringing in 11 new players, and it all began on draft night when Tatum, Semi Ojeleye and two-way contract players Kadeem Allen and Jabari Bird were picked.

 A year later, the Celtics aren’t looking to make such dramatic changes as the team that has been built over the past four years is in place, ready to make a run at the title.

 As things look right now, they will have a starting lineup of Irving, Hayward, Brown, Tatum and Al Horford, one of the best units in the league.

 So Celtics management will meet in their beautiful new training facility tonight and decide who to take with the No. 27 pick.

 Few NBA teams are able to stand pat, but the Celtics are in a position to keep their offseason moves to the minor variety after putting together a team of talented young players coupled with proven all-stars.

Jim Fenton may be reached at jfenton@enterprisenews.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JFenton_ent.