Isaiah Thomas is heading back to Boston in a different role. The Celtics have hired the 37-year-old as a pro and college scout, and he will be based in the Seattle area, league sources said.
Thomas joined Celtics executives at the NBA Combine in Chicago this week and helped interview draft prospects, a sign that his move into scouting is already underway. For Boston, the hire brings back one of the most familiar names from its recent rise. For Thomas, it marks a new step after a playing career that stretched through the 2023-24 season, when he appeared in six games for Phoenix.
Thomas became one of the most beloved Celtics of this century after Boston acquired him from the Suns in February 2015. He turned that opportunity into two All-Star selections, in 2015-16 and 2016-17, finished fifth in MVP voting in 2016-17 and was named second-team All-NBA that same season.
His peak in Boston ended under difficult circumstances. Thomas played through a significant hip injury during much of the 2017 playoffs and was shut down for the final three games of the loss to Cleveland in the Eastern Conference finals. Two months later, in August 2017, he was traded to Cleveland in the deal that brought Kyrie Irving to Boston.
What came after was a long search for the same level of stability. Thomas spent time with the Cavaliers, Lakers, Nuggets, Wizards, Pelicans, Mavericks, Hornets and Suns, while hip problems followed him for the rest of his career. Even so, his imprint in Boston never really faded. Brad Stevens credited Thomas with helping establish the culture that turned the Celtics into one of the NBA's most successful franchises of the past decade.
This hiring is also a reminder that Thomas’ relationship with the Celtics has outlasted the playing part of his story. He returns not as the 5-foot-9-inch guard who once carried the offense, but as a scout helping shape the next wave of talent. For a franchise still trying to stay at the top, bringing back a former centerpiece who understands both the pressure and the expectations of Boston is a move with clear intent.
