Mike Conley is joining the Celtics on a one-year deal, giving them a 38-year-old guard entering his 20th NBA season. He becomes their most veteran player immediately, a clear shift from the younger additions the team used in the previous two offseasons.
Mike Conley Adds Experience
Conley spent 2007 to 2019 with the Memphis Grizzlies, then moved to the Utah Jazz from 2019 to 2023 before playing for the Minnesota Timberwolves from 2023 to 2026. The Celtics now add a player who was named an All-Star in 2021, made Defensive Second Team in 2012, and has won four NBA Sportsmanship Awards.
He also has the kind of résumé that travels well in a tight rotation. Conley is a career 38.7% three-point shooter, has been named the NBA’s Teammate of the Year twice, and has never been whistled for a technical foul.
Brad Stevens and the Celtics
Brad Stevens is also from Indiana, the same state as Conley, who spent one season at Ohio State before going fourth overall in the 2007 NBA Draft. The fit is straightforward on paper: a veteran point guard who can steady possessions, make decisions cleanly, and sit behind Derrick White while still being ready for crucial moments.
Last year with Minnesota, Conley averaged 4.5 points and 2.9 assists in 18.4 minutes per game, numbers that line up with a reduced role rather than heavy nightly usage. He had been the Timberwolves’ starting point guard until the 2024-2025 season, then came off the bench last year.
Celtics Rotation Pressure
That is the tradeoff in this move. The Celtics are built to win now, but Conley probably will not get much run when the roster is fully healthy, which makes the signing more about control than volume.
He can still swing short bursts. In Game 1 of the Western Conference Semi against the San Antonio Spurs, Conley put up 12 points, 6 assists, and 0 turnovers, and he shot 50% from beyond the arc in the 2025-2026 postseason. The exact financial terms of the one-year deal are still the unresolved part, but the roster message is already clear: the Celtics added experience at the spot where calm tends to matter most.
