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Boston Celtics basketball will return to TD Garden on October 6, when they'll open up their eight-game pre-season schedule against the Philadelphia 76ers. Here is the entire schedule, which features two games in Boston:
| Date | Opponent | Time (EST) | Location |
| Oct. 6 | Philadelphia 76ers | 7:30 PM | TD Garden |
| Oct. 8 | New York Knicks | 7:30 PM | XL Center |
| Oct. 10 | Toronto Raptors | 7:00 PM | Air Canada Centre |
| Oct. 11 | New York Knicks | 7:30 PM | Mohegan Sun Arena |
| Oct. 15 | Toronto Raptors | 7:30 PM | Cross Insurance Arena |
| Oct. 16 | Philadelphia 76ers | 7:00 PM | Wells Fargo Center |
| Oct. 19 | Brooklyn Nets | 3:00 PM | Barclays Center |
| Oct. 22 | Brooklyn Nets | 7:30 PM | TD Garden |
With 18 players currently on the roster, Boston will need to get down to 15 before the regular season, so the pre-season could be used as a tryout or a showcase for various players on the roster.
One of those players could be Brandon Bass, who the Celtics have "tried like hell" to trade, according to Grantland's Zach Lowe.
Since the Celtics have so many young big men on the roster who require playing time in order to progress their skills, having Bass on the roster only holds them back from accomplishing that. Bass is a quality veteran completely deserving of 20 minutes per game or more, but those minutes would be better spent on the development of the likes of Kelly Olynyk, Jared Sullinger, Tyler Zeller, Vitor Faverani, and possibly Colton Iverson.
As Lowe alluded to in his article, players like Bass aren't sought after in today's NBA. Even though he's a knockdown mid-range jump shooter, most teams prefer a big who can stretch their range all the way to three. At the moment, Bass is incapable of doing that -- though he occasionally practices threes before games -- and it's not like he brings any other top-notch skills to the court.
Even though his $6.9 million expiring contract has some value, it appears it'll be difficult for the Celtics to find a team interested in acquiring Brandon Bass unless he's part of a larger trade package. No matter what happens with the roster, at least we know when we'll see the Boston Celtics back on the floor again.