Chris Mannix explains Wyc Grousbeck’s new role with the Celtics, what’s next | The Greg Hill Show
joining us now to talk about what’s going on with Wick Grossback and the Celtics and the sale and everything else that’s been breaking overnight basically is and Chris Chris Manx but Chris you’ve you do so many different things I’ve been saying Sports Illustrated Chris Manx what do you want to be known as? Uh well I’ve been at SI for about 20 years so we’ll we’ll stick with that. Okay, perfect. Uh Chris, that news yesterday coming as a shock to a bit of to us. Um, obviously Wick has come on this show and talked about the fact that he was going to stay on as governor of the Celtics after the sale for at least the next three years. What changed? Well, this sale is is still being reviewed by the league office and as it has been reviewed, um, there’s some boxes that needed to be checked. One is that in order to be uh the governor of the team, you have to own at least 15% of the team. And while Wick Grouse is, to my understanding, you know, going to be taking some of the money from the sale and effectively buying back in to to the ownership group, um he is not going to own 15% of the team. the only person individual with a 15% ownership is going to be Bill Chisum. So, uh this is this is purely a a rules situation where the NBA has it in their their bylaws that you know you cannot be a team governor unless you own 15% of the team. But don’t they know that going into this for Wick to make that announcement that he’s selling the team but then also that he’s going to stay on? Why wouldn’t that have been ironed out before uh making an announcement like that? Well, I I I do think that the the announcement was a little premature. You know, that that you know, they they can say whatever they want, but the NBA’s got its rules and they’re not going to approve uh a governorship of somebody that doesn’t own 15% of the team. Now, when this deal was done, it was done really in name only. when it was announced, there was still a lot of uh financial aspects to it where Bill Chisum was still out there um you know putting together the finances of the deal. Whit Grouch was still figuring out you know his financial part of a stake in the team. I I don’t know this for a fact, but I’m guessing that they weren’t entirely sure what the league rules were on governorship and and how it it required the 15% to stay on as the governor. I’d also add that that, you know, it is a league rule, but I know there are people in in the league office that are a little uneasy with the uh this sort of idea that there could be owners out there selling their teams and trying to maintain control of their teams contractually. I mean, we saw it, you know, sort of with Mark Cuban where he thought he was going to sell the team and maintain his position as head of basketball operations. We may see it with the Lakers, with Jeannie Bus, who sold that team to Mark Walter, but is reportedly anyway going to maintain control of basketball operations. Like the NBA, what they’d like is for the person that owns the most of the team to be in charge of the team. So, I think that, you know, it is against the league rules, but I think generally speaking, the league wants to have the person with the most financial stake to have the biggest voice. All right, Chris, let’s get into the basketball weeds of it more than anything. Tatum obviously looks like he’s going to be done for a large portion of the season. I know there’s been reports that he might be able to come back towards the end of the season. What like what’s the expectation for this year? And I think even bigger than that, what’s the mindset with them unloading all their money going into the 2020 season when uh 2027 season when Tatum comes back? Look, the the really the the most important part of this season is is twofold. One is to get as far under the tax thresholds as you possibly can. We saw them do exactly that this week with the George Nang trade. Um to not to be cheap about your team, but to set yourself up with future financial flexibility. like you want to be able to deal away draft picks, to have the ability to aggre aggregate contracts, all the things that are difficult when you’re over some of these aprons. So, I think that’s the the first priority of the team. And I think honestly the second is to get a good draft pick. I mean, if we’re being honest, like this, the Celtics have control of their 2026 draft pick. That could wind up being a lottery pick, which could be useful in terms of adding young talent or could be useful if they decide to go a different route and and make a trade. I mean, they’re they’re in an advantageous position where they know they’re going to go into the 2728 season or the 26 27 season with two of the best young players in the game or two of the best players in the game. and Jason Tatum and Jaylen Brown. Everything about this season, I believe, is going to be about making sure that they’re in the best position next summer to to put a kind of team together that can get get them back on track. Chris, what is the perception of Wick around the NBA? Because, you know, we cover the team locally, we talk about them every day, uh, but I didn’t know the ownership breakdown until the team was sold. What is the perception of Wick? And is there concern at all with, you know, what the how Chisum would run the team as opposed to how Wick did? I don’t know if there’s concern about how Chisum will run the team yet. I mean, there’s just still too many unknowns and and I think some of that concern gets alleviated, unfortunately, because this team’s in the position that they’re in, and you know, they’re they have an opportunity here to to shed salary and kind of reboot this thing in the summer of of 2026. I think it would have been more illuminating had this team, you know, advanced the finals, won a championship, and then we would have seen if, you know, a Bill Schismled ownership group was willing to, you know, pony up and and pay these exorbitant luxury tax fees to keep a championship caliber team together. So, I I think the juryy’s still out on on Bill Chisum and and his group right now. As far as the perception of of Wick Gr I think it’s been great. I mean like the, you know, NBA people in the league office, they love him. And look, his ownership has been unquestionably a success. Yes. I mean, if you want to parse it down, like it his father owns the bulk of the team. His individual stake in the team is relatively small. Uh, considering, but the guy delivered two championships. He set up the Celtics to win championships in the future. I I don’t know how much more you can ask for out of an owner who over the last few years has shown he was willing to spend to keep this team together. Chris, when it comes to Jaylen Brown, it’s another year of his name being tied to trade talks. Another year of people speculating, is he happy in Boston? Does he like the Boston as a city, the fan base, the ownership? Do you hear whispers about that? Do you have any intel on how Jaylen Brown feels about the Celtics and how the Celtics feel about Jaylen Brown? I I think the the Celtics feel great about Jaylen Brown going into this season. Um I don’t believe he was ever really discussed. I mean, teams called about Jaylen Brown as as you would expect. They called everybody when Jason Tatum went down. They they they wanted to see if the Celtics were going to conduct a fire sale, but even though they moved off some some key pieces, I I I never uh it was never my understanding that Jaylen Brown was close to to being traded. Now, I think Jaylen would, you know, he wants to win, but I’m sure he’ll he’s looking at this season as an opportunity to to show people what he can do as the the lead guy, the star, so to speak, on on a team. Now, it’s not going to be a team that’s going to compete for a championship, but I think Jaylen would probably relish the opportunity to to spread his wings a little bit and do some different things um as a lead player on on a team like this. And his relationship with Boston, I mean, I I know him a little bit. I’ve done a couple of profiles on him. Um, but I’d also know that like watching him his social media this summer, like he’s still around. Like he’s always around town doing events and doing community stuff and outreach. And look, a lot of guys do that on different teams, but not many to the extent that Jaylen Brown does. So, he’s not giving any indications that he’s soured on the city, on the team. And you know, I think this year uh has the potential to be a really good individual year for Jaylen Brown where he could average some some big numbers, maybe make a first team or second team allNBA. Um it’s tough for the Celtics, but it could be an opportunity for Jaylen Brown to show people kind of what he can do. Chris, you say that individual and it’s tough for the Celtics. So, I I guess I’m thinking without Tatum, there’s a part of me that says, “All right, maybe this is the perfect year for the Celtics to, you know, not have the best year possible and possibly become a lottery team where now they have the ability to use that lottery pick to maybe trade for another guy to start a new big three. If that is the case or if they’re a team that squeaks into the postseason, what’s the new piece that they could potentially get for 2027? Because that’s where my focus is. Jaylen Brown, Jason Tatum, and who could be that other guy that maybe we should keep our eyes on down the road? Well, it’s hard to point out a specific guy because look, I mean, injuries, you know, create availability and, you know, when when Damen Lillard went down, all of a sudden things went a different way in Milwaukee. When Tatum went down, all of a sudden, you know, a guy like Drew Holiday became available in in Boston. You just don’t know exactly who’s going to be on the market quite yet. But you do you do know positionally kind of what they’re going to be looking for and you’ve got the wings short up with two guys that can play 35 plus minutes per game um for the next three or four years. What you’re probably looking at uh first is in that back court. You know, you trade away Holiday. You’ve still got Pritchard, but when Tatum comes back, you know, White’s going to be a year older. You want to have, you know, kind of a a a three-headed monster in that back court to to to be able to to play like you did with Holiday. you know, the front court decimated over the last, you know, couple of months. You know, Cornett’s gone, Horford’s probably gone. There’s there’s there’s going to be a lot of room to work with in that that position. So, those are the two spots I would think they’d most likely be targeting. And look, if you can get a a it doesn’t even have to be an allNBA guy. If you can get like a fringe all-star guy at one of those spots with the the the pieces and the assets that you have, you’re you’re off to the races in 2026. like there’s I do agree. I think I think that being a lottery team is probably in the best interest of the Celtics. Maybe you get lucky and see what happened with Dallas and San Antonio, teams that moved up in the draft lottery last year. We’ve seen it happen before. If you can get a a mid to high lottery pick, you know, all of a sudden you can either use that pick to get that young talent or you can get that fringe all-star guy who you pair him with Tatum and Brown and you’re not going to find many teams better than Boston in the Eastern Conference. So, even though this year is probably going to be really difficult, I I I don’t think it’s a stretch to say they can come back in the in 26 27 and immediately look like one of, if not the best team in the Eastern Conference. Uh, quickly, I know we’re running out of time, Chris, is it a stretch to say that potentially the reason they had this agreement with Wick was that they expected the need to be uh sellers and that since Tatum got hurt, there was more of an acceptance from the fan base. In other words, that Chisum would have Wick as the front-facing guy to explain decisions that may not have been popular. Now, the fan base pretty much is fully butt in considering the the demise of Tatum for this season. Does that make sense? No, I I don’t think that’s that was ever really the case. I mean, my my understanding was, you know, Bill Chisum wanted to buy this team. There were other people out there that wanted to buy this team. One of the conditions with buying this team was that, you know, it was going to be sold kind of a in peace meal and b you would have to agree to terms that have Wick Gross as the the governor and and front-facing guy of of the organization. I never got the sense that, you know, Bill Chisum didn’t want to be the front guy. I mean, the guy’s a a longtime Celtics fan. Like, I I think he’s, you know, as he gets into this governorship role, I think he’s going to embrace it and be a front-facing type of guy. I just think to go back to what I said at the top, like this is a there’s a lot of I think there’s going to be a lot of owners out there that want to have it both ways that want to get the huge paydays that come with selling a team in 2025 and beyond and also be able to leverage that to maintain some control of the team. And and really what the NBA is saying is that at a bare minimum, you you if you’re going to do that, you got to have a 15% stake in the game. You’ve got to have some real flesh in the game or else it’s just not going to work. All right. Well, Chris, thanks so much for joining us this morning. I before I let you go, I need to ask because between yourself, Curtis, and me, uh, we have three BC alum on on the line. So, are you following BC still? Are do you have a connection with how you feel about Bill O’Brien and the BC Eagles going into the fall? I I’m I’m I’m a BC football fan like until they lose. Like I I basically have uh I’m I’m rooting for like you know college football playoff up until that like week six loss to Virginia Tech and then I’m kind of basically jumping off the bandwagon. Yeah. Okay. I love it. We’re all on the same page. Amen. All right Chris. Thanks. All right. Thanks so much for calling. Thanks Chris. You got a guest.
Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix joined the Greg Hill Show to discuss Wyc Grousbeck, the Celtics sale, what’s next for the team, and goals for the upcoming season.
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