Isaiah Thomas: Gordon Hayward is piece Celtics need to reach Finals

Gordon Hayward’s decision to sign with the Boston Celtics and part ways with the Utah Jazz has rocked the NBA world, and gives the C’s another piece to their championship puzzle.

Boston floor general Isaiah Thomas, who was seen dancing just before the news of Hayward’s arrival broke on Tuesday, said the move helps the Celtics catch up to the likes of the Cleveland Cavaliers after falling to LeBron James and Co. 4-1 in last season’s Eastern Conference Finals despite having the East’s top record in the regular season and earning the No. 1 seed.

Thomas told ESPN that Hayward was the missing link and the “type of player we needed to get to the Finals. I’m excited and can’t wait to get to work.”

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Of joining the Celtics, coached by Hayward’s college coach, Brad Stevens, Hayward said Tuesday in a Players Tribune post: “There was the special history of the Celtics, as a franchise — from Russell, to Bird, to Pierce, and it goes on. There was the amazing potential of this current Celtics roster, as a team — from ownership, to the front office, to a talented roster with Isaiah, and Al, and everyone else. And of course, there was Coach Stevens: Not just for the relationship that we’ve built off the court — but also for the one that we started building on the court, all of those years ago, in Indiana (at Butler University).”

Boston traded the No. 1 overall pick in last month’s NBA draft for the No. 3 pick and other assets, landing Duke talent Jayson Tatum, who general manager Danny Ainge believes was another missing link for the C’s.