The Bolton boss is desperate to stiffen up his back-four because of mounting injuries and he is keen on the former Black Cats skipper.
"Gray is a player we are interested in but it remains to be seen what is going to happen with him and Celtic," he said.
"If, as looks increasingly likely, Celtic don't follow up their interest in keeping him on, we'll be asking Sunderland to see whether he wants to come to Bolton."