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The Portland Trail Blazers are in the news for all the wrong reasons lately, namely salary issues and staff turnover, but they did make a basketball related decision on Friday night, signing John Tonje to two-way NBA contract. That report came from Shams Charania of ESPN.
Tonje, 25, was taken in the second round of the NBA Draft in 2025 by the Utah Jazz, but ended up playing six games for the Boston Celtics. In those six games, he averaged 2.5 points per game.
He had a better run with the Celtics in this year's Las Vegas Summer League that just wrapped up. He averaged 14.8 ppg in the Summer League session, also shooting 45.2 percent from the floor.
He spent 11 games with the Celtics' G-League affiliate in Maine in 2025-26, scoring 18.1 points per game in that time.
He spent parts of six years in college with Colorado State, Missouri and Wisconsin, taking advantage of the COVID-19 add-on year and a redshirt. He averaged 19.6 ppg at Wisconsin, while getting named a Second-Team All-American and a member of the All-Big 10 team.
It was always unlikely that he was going to make a real impact with the Celtics, as the team has Payton Pritchard, Derrick White and Mike Conley Jr. at the point guard position, as well as an accomplished group of shooting guard and small forward types on the perimeter.
With the Blazers, he'll look to get a consistent chance on a team that is building in the Western Conference.
Boston Celtics guard John Tonje (8) shoots during the second half against the Orlando Magic at TD Garden. Paul Rutherford-Imagn Images
--The Philadelphia 76ers signed 23-year veteran LeBron James to a two-year deal on Friday, making life tougher for the Celtics in the Eastern Conference. It also appears that the Celtics helped facilitate that deal by sending Jaylen Brown to the 76ers in a trade earlier this month.
That trade reportedly changed the calculus for James in his free agency decision.
The two teams will play each other several times this season, including twice in the preseason. The decision of James to sign in Philly may also have an impact on the Celtics with regards to their national TV schedule.
--Celtics fourth-year man Jordan Walsh earned a three-year contract extension earlier this week. We took a look at what the deal means for Walsh, and how it might impact some of the rotations for head coach Joe Mazzulla later this season.
Remember to join our CELTICS on ROUNDTABLE community, which is FREE! You can post your own thoughts, in text or video form, and you can engage with our Roundtable staff, as well as other Celtics fans. If prompted to download the Roundtable APP, that's free too!
Continue reading...
Tonje, 25, was taken in the second round of the NBA Draft in 2025 by the Utah Jazz, but ended up playing six games for the Boston Celtics. In those six games, he averaged 2.5 points per game.
He had a better run with the Celtics in this year's Las Vegas Summer League that just wrapped up. He averaged 14.8 ppg in the Summer League session, also shooting 45.2 percent from the floor.
He spent 11 games with the Celtics' G-League affiliate in Maine in 2025-26, scoring 18.1 points per game in that time.
He spent parts of six years in college with Colorado State, Missouri and Wisconsin, taking advantage of the COVID-19 add-on year and a redshirt. He averaged 19.6 ppg at Wisconsin, while getting named a Second-Team All-American and a member of the All-Big 10 team.
It was always unlikely that he was going to make a real impact with the Celtics, as the team has Payton Pritchard, Derrick White and Mike Conley Jr. at the point guard position, as well as an accomplished group of shooting guard and small forward types on the perimeter.
With the Blazers, he'll look to get a consistent chance on a team that is building in the Western Conference.
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Boston Celtics guard John Tonje (8) shoots during the second half against the Orlando Magic at TD Garden. Paul Rutherford-Imagn Images
Also in the news for the Celtics
--The Philadelphia 76ers signed 23-year veteran LeBron James to a two-year deal on Friday, making life tougher for the Celtics in the Eastern Conference. It also appears that the Celtics helped facilitate that deal by sending Jaylen Brown to the 76ers in a trade earlier this month.
That trade reportedly changed the calculus for James in his free agency decision.
The two teams will play each other several times this season, including twice in the preseason. The decision of James to sign in Philly may also have an impact on the Celtics with regards to their national TV schedule.
--Celtics fourth-year man Jordan Walsh earned a three-year contract extension earlier this week. We took a look at what the deal means for Walsh, and how it might impact some of the rotations for head coach Joe Mazzulla later this season.
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Remember to join our CELTICS on ROUNDTABLE community, which is FREE! You can post your own thoughts, in text or video form, and you can engage with our Roundtable staff, as well as other Celtics fans. If prompted to download the Roundtable APP, that's free too!
Continue reading...
