Anfernee Simons dealt with trade rumors for nearly his entire tenure in Boston before the Celtics elected to deal him away last week in exchange for Chicago Bulls. center Nikola Vucevic.
The veteran guard is seeing a bigger role now in his new home in Chicago, earning a start in his first four games including during Wednesday’s game against the Celtics. However, Simons was reflective about his time in Boston before the contest and the realities of being traded on a team that was destined for the postseason
“You build a connection with the city and team — you won together, lost together,” Simons told reporters via CLNS Media. “So that’s the toughest part, getting some relationships and relationships, and being able to go out there and compete with each other, and that kind of stops, and then you kind of feel you kind of feel sad about it. But the NBA moves fast, not even 48 hours later I’m on the court with a new team.”
Simons ended up playing a pivotal role in Boston during his 49 games in Boston, averaging 14.2 points per game despite averaging just 24.5 minutes per game and took a lot from the experience.
“They have a lot of aspirations to win a championship, and you can see that each and every day by their habits, the way they practice, the way they speak to each other, it’s one common goal,” Simons said “I learned a lot from just being around and being able to experience it here.”
Simons is set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer when his $27 million salary expires this summer. He’s currently auditioning for a long-term role in Chicago but wouldn’t hold any hard feelings about the trade when asked about a potential reunion in Boston.
“For sure, obviously, we gotta finish our season [in Chicago] first and then see what happens there,” Simons said. “For sure, down the line. I said it, I enjoyed my time here. I built great relationships here. So, I see it for sure.”
The reality of that reunion being feasible is another matter, given Boston’s salary commitments for next season. The team already has $183 million committed to 12 players, and that doesn’t include free-agent-to-be Nikola Vucevic. Any other big spending Boston does is likely to go to a big man. However, Simons’ positive view of the franchise bodes well as the 26-year-old made the best of his brief stay.