isaiah thomas is still unhappy with his trade to the Cavaliers after he gave his heart and soul to the Celtics while dragging them to the Eastern Conference Finals. He has been such a good addition for Boston that trading him must have been hard for them. His hip injury surely made it an easier decision to make, but there is no one who can argue that he wasn't invested. He was all-in with the Celtics, and he is now with a Cavaliers team that he may not want to be with at all. He may learn that the cosmic plan for him should have taken him to Cleveland because it will then take him somewhere else.
That big deal
Cleveland will not pay him, but they could flip him for someone else so he could get the big payday that he was hoping for. Someone who has not been watching the NBA recently does not realize that there is a lot of money going around, and he could get paid a lot of money to go to yet another team. It may not even matter where he goes because someone will pay him well to play for them. There are many destinations that he could go to, or he could stay with Cleveland to be sure that he could get the money that he deserves. He would become the focal point of the team after LeBron leaves, and it would provide him with a chance to prove himself once again while they build around him with all those picks and assets.
Rebuilding
Cleveland is making sure that they can rebuild as soon as possible after LeBron leaves, and there are many people who will notice that Cleveland can get better quickly because they have Thomas on their team. He may be upset now, but he may find that he wants to stay in Cleveland because he sees purpose in being with this team longterm.
He would make his money, and he would be the superstar that they were hoping for because they know that LeBron will not stay for the rest of his career.
Change sucks
Change across sports is no fun because it just does not fit in with the plans that we have in our heads. We never think that change will happen the way that it does, and many are left shocked.
More people were thinking that the Celtics would be happy to have Thomas there to play with Gordon Hayward, but they are now looking at a much different unit. Thomas might have planned to play with the Celtics for the rest of his career, but that is not possible now. He has 28 other spots in the NBA he could go to, and he should think about which one intrigues him because they might just make him an offer that he will not be able to refuse.