Mike Conley has agreed to a one-year deal with the Boston Celtics, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania. The move makes Conley the 14th player in NBA history to reach 20 seasons.

Conley spent last season with the Minnesota Timberwolves, where his role shrank fast. He averaged a career-low 4.5 points and 2.9 assists in just 18.4 minutes across 54 games, ceding the starting point guard job to Donte DiVincenzo. Boston now becomes his ninth NBA stop.

Why Boston made sense

Conley weighed a handful of offers before deciding, according to Charania. His agents, Steven Heumann and Jessica Holtz of CAA Sports, informed the Celtics of his decision this morning.

The signing gives Boston a veteran ball handler behind Derrick White and Payton Pritchard, both of whom logged heavy minutes last season. Conley won’t start. He doesn’t need to. His job is to steady the second unit and give Joe Mazzulla another option who has seen every kind of playoff pressure.

Twenty seasons, one long career

Conley entered the league in 2007 out of Ohio State, taken third overall by Memphis. He has never made an All-NBA team and only made his first All-Star appearance in 2021 with Utah. What he has instead is a reputation. Coaches trust him. Locker rooms trust him. That kind of trust doesn’t show up in a box score.

Reaching 20 seasons puts him in rare company, alongside players like Vince Carter and LeBron James. Few guards his size and style have lasted this long in a league that keeps getting faster.

What it means for Boston’s roster

The Celtics have been busy this offseason, and Conley’s addition is one more piece in a bench build meant to lighten the load on their core. At the veteran minimum, the cost is low and the risk is close to none.

Conley will turn 39 in October, still chasing the ring that has eluded him this long.

References

ESPN. (2026). Shams Charania reports Mike Conley agrees to one-year deal with Boston Celtics. Published July 1.

Yahoo Sports. (2026). Mike Conley reportedly agrees to 1-year deal with Celtics, becoming 14th player in NBA history to reach 20 seasons. Published July 1.