Boston's payroll is $198.7M, above the $165.0M cap and below the $200.4M tax line. The books are tight now and tighter next season, when Tatum and George together cost more than they do today.
Boston has room under the tax, but not much of it.
The payroll is $198.7M, which makes the club over the cap and under the tax. The tax line is $200.4M, so one midseason addition of any size could change that status. The first apron is $209.0M and the second is $221.7M. Those lines matter only if ownership decides to cross the first one, and nothing here says it will.
Two contracts define the structure.
Jayson Tatum earns $58.5M and Paul George $54.1M, followed by Derrick White at $30.3M, Mitchell Robinson at $15.0M and Sam Hauser at $10.8M. Next season Tatum rises to $62.8M and White to $32.6M. George is listed at $56.6M for 2027-28, and that year is a player option. George is 36. The sheet shows the option exists; it does not show whether he will take it.
Next season's books gain little room from the small deals.
Payton Pritchard is at $7.8M now and $8.3M in 2027-28. Terms of his extension, agreed October 13, were not reported, so that figure should not be read as the new deal. Neemias Queta moves from $2.7M to $12.5M, which is the largest jump on the sheet outside the stars. Jordan Walsh is $2.4M this year on a team option and $4.6M next. Almost every name on the sheet is still there in 2027-28, so little comes off the books.
The pick ledger offers few chips and several debts.
Boston owns its 2027 and 2030 first-round picks, holds a protected 2028 first and has swap rights on a 2027 second and a 2029 first. It owes second-rounders to San Antonio in 2028, Oklahoma City in 2029 and Brooklyn in 2030. A club that wants to add salary has first-round picks to offer, but few of them are clean, and it has no second-rounders to throw in after 2027. Those are the limits of what the numbers show. They do not show what the front office intends.
Are the Celtics over the luxury tax in 2026-27?
No. Their payroll is $198.7M, below the $200.4M tax line, though the margin is small. They are over the $165.0M cap.
Does Paul George have a player option for 2027-28?
Yes. His 2027-28 salary of $56.6M is a player option, so the decision is his. He earns $54.1M this season.
