Kristaps Porzingis to Celtics!!!!!

TripleOT · Jun 22, 2023

KP gives Boston a very tall option that can both post and work out deep at the top. Tatum and Brown are not good from three in the middle of the court, at 33%, and aren’t good from foul line depth at 42%, both on heavy volume compared to the rest of the league’s players. KP shoots the three at 38% up high, and hits foul line jumpers at 47%. White and Brogdon are both 40%+ from three up high, and with three threats in the middle of the court, the Celtics should be better able to attack zones and play Nuggets style two man games with their center in the middle of the court.

Looking forward to KP high pick and rolls with Brogdon, White, Tatum, JB. Porzingis is no Jokic, but he is Jokicesque in that he can facilitate up top, look over the defense, hit the deep ball, put the ball on the floor, make shots on the move, etc. Now that he will be playing with lots of talented offensive players, I’d like to see him more of a facilitator. He didn’t do a lot of facilitating in NYC, at 1.3 app, and Dallas, at 1.8 apg, but got the chance to pass the ball a bit more with the Wiz, at 2.7 apg. I’d like to see him flirt with 4 assists per game with Boston if they run a lot of offense through him up top.

lars10 · Jun 22, 2023

lovegtm said:
Smart and 35 for Porzingis, 25, and 12-24 in 2024 is a really, really good return on Marcus.

I was pretty skeptical he'd age well, and this is still the highest they could have sold on him any time in the last couple years.

He already hasn’t aged well.. and Brogdon is an injury risk.. but Smart has been hurt a ton recently..often playing through it for better or worse.

lovegtm · Jun 22, 2023

lars10 said:
He already hasn’t aged well.. and Brogdon is an injury risk.. but Smart has been hurt a ton recently..often playing through it for better or worse.

Yes, and I'm fairly convinced that the team wants to move on from Brogdon as well, and is positioned fine to do so.

bsj · Jun 22, 2023

My head loves this trade.
But damn I liked Smart.

MyDaughterLovesTomGordon · Jun 22, 2023

I love Marcus, but especially after the mid-season hip injury that seemed to linger, he just wasn't the same guy. One of my favorite things about watching this team over the past five years or so was the Marcus Smart experience: He'd lose the ball, get pissed at himself, and then just will himself to get the ball back, no matter how much he needed to dive on the floor and throw himself around. Marcus Smart doing Marcus Smart things. The best.

Marcus Smart making James Harden lose his mind is one of the most memorable moments for the Cs in the past decade.

But the Cs needed that version of him so badly in the playoffs and it just didn't seem to be there. The will was there, I believe that, but not the ability. Maybe it comes back a bit with offseason rest, but flipping him for Porzingis and two firsts is just too good not to do. I think Kristaps will be quickly beloved in Boston - he can do freakish things. He's like Luke Kornet, but extremely skilled at basketball.

benhogan · Jun 22, 2023

lovegtm said:
Yes, and I'm fairly convinced that the team wants to move on from Brogdon as well, and is positioned fine to do so.

Yep & now they have 8 months to see if Malcolm's elbow is OK. There is no rush there.

Brad's ability to use a First round pick to get off salary & improve an asset has been proven effective several times over the last 24 months. Getting those two firsts, just put more arrows in his quiver.

lexrageorge · Jun 22, 2023

mikeford said:
He can barely stay on the court. Am I living in the same reality as you guys?

He played 65 games last season, 4 more than Marcus Smart.

Ed Hillel · Jun 22, 2023

Mystic Merlin said:
I think Celtics fans appreciate him plenty, if anything my impression is we hold him in higher esteem than non-Celtics fans.

Yes. Non-Celtics fans are livid about the heist Stevens pulled off.

lexrageorge said:
He played 65 games last season, 4 more than Marcus Smart.

In fact, Smart has averaged exactly 60 games played the last 4 seasons. Dude’s hurt all the time and it’s only going to get worse.

lovegtm · Jun 22, 2023

Ed Hillel said:
Yes. Non-Celtics fans are livid about the heist Stevens pulled off.

View: https://twitter.com/billbarnwell/status/1671734672294920193?s=20

Light-Tower-Power · Jun 22, 2023

I think I’m more excited that Smart is gone than anything. It was time. Derrick White needs to be handed the keys to the starting lineup and that was never going to happen with Smart still here.

lovegtm · Jun 22, 2023

Light-Tower-Power said:
I think I’m more excited that Smart is gone than anything. It was time. Derrick White needs to be handed the keys to the starting lineup and that was never going to happen with Smart still here.

Yeah, it's a very "Billy Beane trades the coach's binkies" vibe....except that we also got 2 1sts and a top 25-30 guy.

Eagle3 · Jun 22, 2023

jose melendez said:
I too would rather have traded Brogdan--though getting the picks makes me think a lot harder about it.

The injury risk makes me nuts though. We now have three rotation guys with rotten injury histories, and last year arguably all three were at the high end of their health potential.

I agree that Porzingis adds another potentially fragile guy to the mix, but I'm not sure Brogdan is a bigger injury risk than Smart going forward. Marcus is far from an iron man. He's only played 70 or more games 3 times in his 9 years, and it will likely get worse given his playing style as he ages. Brogdan has played more games than Smart 2 of the last 3 years.

Imbricus · Jun 22, 2023

I don't see how any "Grade the Trade" gives the Celtics less than an A- (and even that I would view as a harsh grade). If the new post-CBA currency is draft picks, well, the Celtics got two good ones. I really think Brad's genius is this GM'ing stuff. He's like a shark with an "aw shucks" grin -- he saw Washington dumping value at cheap prices and closed in, looking for a steal. All he needed was Memphis to overvalue Smart a bit, and boom.

Ed Hillel · Jun 22, 2023

People seem to think Marcus and Ja are going to be a great fit, I assume because the perception of offense vs. defense. Personally, I think they’re going to be a bad fit if they’re on the court at the same time. You want Ja handling the ball as much as possible, especially in crunch time, which is Marcus’s favorite time to…shine.

lexrageorge · Jun 22, 2023

For all the angst regarding Porzingis being available for only 60-65 games during the regular season, his 65 games would put him 8th among last season's Celtics players, 2 ahead of Al Horford, and 2 behind both Brogdon and Jaylen Brown. Also, of the 7 ahead of him, two of them are Luke Kornet (69) and Sam Hauser (80). All they need from KP is 60 regular season games.

lars10 · Jun 22, 2023

Light-Tower-Power said:
I think I’m more excited that Smart is gone than anything. It was time. Derrick White needs to be handed the keys to the starting lineup and that was never going to happen with Smart still here.

Cs lineups at the end of games will also have 5 legit shooters on the floor at all times.. I’m looking forward to teams not being able to double or collapse on Tatum or Brown while leaving Smart wide open on the 3 point line… to see if it was 100% imaginary or if it was actually happening.

Also.. it was pretty clear White was the better player during Smart’s injury.. and when Smart got back their roles not switching was a real problem… White’s minutes going up seem like they’ll be a good thing.. he has the talent and effort on D but is also a lot more under control on offense.

Justthetippett · Jun 22, 2023

Imbricus said:
I don't see how any "Grade the Trade" gives the Celtics less than an A- (and even that I would view as a harsh grade). If the new post-CBA currency is draft picks, well, the Celtics got two good ones. I really think Brad's genius is this GM'ing stuff. He's like a shark with an "aw shucks" grin -- he saw Washington dumping value at cheap prices and closed in, looking for a steal. All he needed was Memphis to overvalue Smart a bit, and boom.

He's damn good. I bet he's pissed the other trade info involving the clippers leaked yesterday before anything was final.

PedrosRedGlove · Jun 22, 2023

lovegtm said:
The more I think about this, the more I like the addition by subtraction of not having to manage Smart's ego about his offensive role and playing time as he gets older.

This team needed some kind of identity rework, particularly offensively. Promoting White to unambiguous starter and paving the way for Point Tatum seem like great steps in that direction.

This is where I am after sleeping on it. I'm as big a Marcus fan as anyone, but I think the team and Joe Mazzulla will be better off not having to manage his delicate ego. As good as he is, he also just thinks a little too highly of himself and it takes away from the overall package. Like, it's great that you're a leader with tenure, but that doesn't elevate you to assistant coach duties, and it's great you worked so hard to turn yourself from a putrid shooter into a decent one, but that turns into a net negative when you start taking 6 3s a game and fall back to 33%.

Overall I like it, maybe love it, for reasons already stated. Given age and style of play it seems like Brad found the perfect time to sell high on Marcus and you're still swapping pretty equal injury risk going forward.

The potential long term play of finding a great fit for an Al replacement is what puts this move over the top for me. Porzingis has his question marks, but this could be a very interesting core for the next few years if things work out.

Mueller's Twin Grannies · Jun 22, 2023

I predicted a few years back that this core would never win a title together. I'm sad that it came true, but it's not like they didn't have multiple chances and kept pissing down their legs when it really counted. They gave away Game 7 to the Cavs in Tatum's first year, but Kyrie Irving got so upset that they got so far without him that he became a problem child the next season, disappearing after the first playoff game against the Bucks, which brings their season to a quick end. Then they let the Heat beat them in the bubble year. Then they get to the Finals and get a series lead and then fade under the bright lights. Then the Heat again this year, but not before getting everybody's hopes up.

Smart was a part of all of those teams, but he's never been the one to wear the horns at the end of the season. Maybe this will be addition by subtraction in the long run (and addition of Zinger), but it really feels a little like they're letting the one guy go who never stops hustling to save other guys who are better players but don't have the same motor. Time will tell, but I hope it serves as a wakeup call for the rest of the team. Tatum has to be pretty bummed, I'd imagine, but I hope he puts it on himself to get the job done this year.

lovegtm · Jun 22, 2023

Mueller's Twin Grannies said:
I predicted a few years back that this core would never win a title together. I'm sad that it came true, but it's not like they didn't have multiple chances and kept pissing down their legs when it really counted. They gave away Game 7 to the Cavs in Tatum's first year, but Kyrie Irving got so upset that they got so far without him that he became a problem child the next season, disappearing after the first playoff game against the Bucks, which brings their season to a quick end. Then they let the Heat beat them in the bubble year. Then they get to the Finals and get a series lead and then fade under the bright lights. Then the Heat again this year, but not before getting everybody's hopes up.

Smart was a part of all of those teams, but he's never been the one to wear the horns at the end of the season. Maybe this will be addition by subtraction in the long run (and addition of Zinger), but it really feels a little like they're letting the one guy go who never stops hustling to save other guys who are better players but don't have the same motor. Time will tell, but I hope it serves as a wakeup call for the rest of the team. Tatum has to be pretty bummed, I'd imagine, but I hope he puts it on himself to get the job done this year.

Why would Tatum be bummed? He gets to play with a way better offensive player, who can also clean up mistakes on defense. I never got the feeling that having Smart on the team was make-or-break for either Tatum or Brown.

dhellers · Jun 22, 2023

Ed Hillel said:
People seem to think Marcus and Ja are going to be a great fit, I assume because the perception of offense vs. defense. Personally, I think they’re going to be a bad fit if they’re on the court at the same time. You want Ja handling the ball as much as possible, especially in crunch time, which is Marcus’s favorite time to…shine.

Needs to be repeated: more often than not, Marcus took on tooMuchOffense because no one else would.

Will that be the case with alpha scorer Ja in the mix?

IOW: will deeply experienced Marcus help Memphis be less stupid? Or willl take-control Marcus conflict with the Man Ja?

IOW2: I am going to miss Marcus.

CoffeeNerdness · Jun 22, 2023

Ed Hillel said:
People seem to think Marcus and Ja are going to be a great fit, I assume because the perception of offense vs. defense. Personally, I think they’re going to be a bad fit if they’re on the court at the same time. You want Ja handling the ball as much as possible, especially in crunch time, which is Marcus’s favorite time to…shine.

The only thing that could take the ball out of Marcus' hands in crunch time is a guy who waves around a gun willy-nilly.

If Ja could thrive next to a brick-laying ball hog like Dillon Brooks he'll be fine next to Marcus, c'mon now.

Ed Hillel · Jun 22, 2023

dhellers said:
Needs to be repeated: more often than not, Marcus took on tooMuchOffense because no one else would.

I do not agree with this. At all.

CoffeeNerdness said:
The only thing that could take the ball out of Marcus' hands in crunch time is a guy who waves around a gun willy-nilly.

If Ja could thrive next to a brick-laying ball hog like Dillon Brooks he'll be fine next to Marcus, c'mon now.

Ja is going to be great no matter what, but I still don’t see these two as some great fit.

Mueller's Twin Grannies · Jun 22, 2023

lovegtm said:
Why would Tatum be bummed? He gets to play with a way better offensive player, who can also clean up mistakes on defense. I never got the feeling that having Smart on the team was make-or-break for either Tatum or Brown.

He is on record as saying Smart is one of his favorite people to play with.

Imbricus · Jun 22, 2023

lovegtm said:
I never got the feeling that having Smart on the team was make-or-break for either Tatum or Brown.

Yeah, remember under Ime, when Smart complained that Jayson and Jaylen never passed the ball. It was just one comment, and I don't think there were lingering bad feelings, but I never got the sense that Smart was that close to either of those two (they did insist on making him part of that magazine cover shoot, but I think more a magnanimous gesture, acknowledging his importance to the team).

RoDaddy · Jun 22, 2023

bsj said:
My head loves this trade.
But damn I liked Smart.

This is where I'm at. Despite his flaws, Smart was often the heart and soul of this team who I so wish won at least one championship here. But as Light Tower mentions, this is a good time to hand the keys to White. We do need to get tougher now though. Can't afford Draymond Green but that type of guy

lexrageorge · Jun 22, 2023

Mueller's Twin Grannies said:
He is on record as saying Smart is one of his favorite people to play with.

Tatum would be far more pissed if Brown was traded.

Imbricus said:
Yeah, remember under Ime, when Smart complained that Jayson and Jaylen never passed the ball. It was just one comment, and I don't think there were lingering bad feelings, but I never got the sense that Smart was that close to either of those two (they did insist on making him part of that magazine cover shoot, but I think more a magnanimous gesture, acknowledging his importance to the team).

I think Brown and Tatum had a lot of respect for Smart. I'm sure over the course of a long season things could get testy at times, but never felt there were locker room problems aside from that toxic Kyrie/Marcus Morris/Rozier stew. I do agree that Smart being the longest tenured Celtic had a lot to do with him being invited to the photo shoot.

lovegtm · Jun 22, 2023

RoDaddy said:
This is where I'm at. Despite his flaws, Smart was often the heart and soul of this team who I so wish won at least one championship here. But as Light Tower mentions, this is a good time to hand the keys to White. We do need to get tougher now though. Can't afford Draymond Green but that type of guy

Who on Denver is "tough" in that sense? I agree they need crunchtime mental toughness on offense, but Smart was the exact opposite of that.

HomeRunBaker · Jun 22, 2023

lexrageorge said:
For all the angst regarding Porzingis being available for only 60-65 games during the regular season, his 65 games would put him 8th among last season's Celtics players, 2 ahead of Al Horford, and 2 behind both Brogdon and Jaylen Brown. Also, of the 7 ahead of him, two of them are Luke Kornet (69) and Sam Hauser (80). All they need from KP is 60 regular season games.

Was coming here to say similar. Like does Kristaps ACL make him more injury prone moving forward? I don't think many people recognize how many NBA players miss double digit games per season. To put into context...

* Of the NBA's top 10 scorers last season, only Jayson a Tatum reached 70 games played.

* Of the Top-60 scorers, 21 reached 70 games. That's 35%. This isn't your grandparents or even your parents NBA.

lovegtm said:
Who on Denver is "tough" in that sense? I agree they need crunchtime mental toughness on offense, but Smart was the exact opposite of that.

Murray, KCP, Brown, Gordon....pretty much their entire roster sans Porter Jr.

dhellers · Jun 22, 2023

Ed Hillel said:
I do not agree with this. At all.
Ja is going to be great no matter what, but I still don’t see these two as some great fit.

Shaq is mostly an idiot, but he is correct when he talks about "big time players will demand the ball". What evidence do you see that Tatum/Brown were instructing MB to give me the ball?

That said: a gamble for all teams.
In particular: is KP someone who will break down under pressure -- say a debilitating ankle sprain colliding with a diving guard in the middle of a playoff run?
IF not, he solves a lot of Celtics issues.

Time will tell.

Justthetippett · Jun 22, 2023

lovegtm said:
Who on Denver is "tough" in that sense? I agree they need crunchtime mental toughness on offense, but Smart was the exact opposite of that.

Gordon and KCP probably fit this bill. Celts would benefit from some good vet competitive guys.

Fishy1 · Jun 22, 2023

I am laughing at people who think this is a bad deal for the C's. It's an absolute heist for a superlative center, and I get the emotionality of all of this, but the heart and soul stuff is deeply silly. I guarantee it was harder for Brad than it was for you all - he coached the guy from the beginning after all.

Smart is a complimentary player in decline at a position where we had better ones. In return we got a superlative offensive center who fills a role defensively at a position where we were in trouble with TL's uncertain health. And we somehow got two first round picks too.

This makes the team much much better than whatever Grit (tm) Smart offered

Sorry, don't mean to be patronizing... But I think some reasoning emotionally rather than thinking this through. If smarts heart and soul couldn't get them over the hump this year, maybe the issue was actually just, you know, an old-fashioned ability to put the ball through the hoop.

BigSoxFan · Jun 22, 2023

Justthetippett said:
Gordon and KCP probably fit this bill. Celts would benefit from some good vet competitive guys.

Probably Bruce Brown too.

Jed Zeppelin · Jun 22, 2023

dhellers said:
Needs to be repeated: more often than not, Marcus took on tooMuchOffense because no one else would.

Will that be the case with alpha scorer Ja in the mix?

IOW: will deeply experienced Marcus help Memphis be less stupid? Or willl take-control Marcus conflict with the Man Ja?

IOW2: I am going to miss Marcus.

I think the idea that Marcus was trying to make up for other players not wanting to take the big shot is overblown.

Defenses collapse on Tatum and Brown which leaves someone on the perimeter open, and if the defense is disciplined, that someone tends to be the worst shooter on the floor aka Smart.

Kliq · Jun 22, 2023

I think people are overrating Porzingis. The trade has a really high ceiling for the Celtics because when Porzingis is healthy and engaged he is a dynamic player that can add a lot on both ends of the floor. We've yet to see that Porzingis on a good team, his closest chance was on Dallas and they were driving him to the airport because he was surly and disengaged. In Washington he played for a low-stakes team that wasn't competitive and thoroughly out of the spotlight, and he played very well. We will see how he fits in Boston, but its a completely different role and this is a guy who has disappointed a lot of fans over the years. Top 25-30 player? I'll believe it when I see it.

I think a lot of the "Smart had to go" stuff is sports-talk-radio, narrative nonsense. Smart was not a perfect player, but I never got the impression he always wanted the ball in crunch time, or was disempowering Tatum/Brown because he wanted the spotlight. Marcus did a lot of things to help this team win a lot of games over the years, and other players will have to step up to replace him. I think his shortcomings were used as an easy scapegoat to avoid the harder questions (Tatum and Brown playing poorly during stretches of the playoffs), and I guess Porzingis can easily fill that role.

Ed Hillel · Jun 22, 2023

dhellers said:
Shaq is mostly an idiot, but he is correct when he talks about "big time players will demand the ball". What evidence do you see that Tatum/Brown were instructing MB to give me the ball?

That said: a gamble for all teams.
In particular: is KP someone who will break down under pressure -- say a debilitating ankle sprain colliding with a diving guard in the middle of a playoff run?
IF not, he solves a lot of Celtics issues.

Time will tell.

I think there’s an age/experience dynamic at play where you have two young guys coming onto a team where Marcus Smart is the recognized leader. That’s gone now, and I think that’s going to be of particular benefit to Tatum.

PedroKsBambino · Jun 22, 2023

Kliq said:
I think people are overrating Porzingis. The trade has a really high ceiling for the Celtics because when Porzingis is healthy and engaged he is a dynamic player that can add a lot on both ends of the floor. We've yet to see that Porzingis on a good team, his closest chance was on Dallas and they were driving him to the airport because he was surly and disengaged. In Washington he played for a low-stakes team that wasn't competitive and thoroughly out of the spotlight, and he played very well. We will see how he fits in Boston, but its a completely different role and this is a guy who has disappointed a lot of fans over the years. Top 25-30 player? I'll believe it when I see it.

I think a lot of the "Smart had to go" stuff is sports-talk-radio, narrative nonsense. Smart was not a perfect player, but I never got the impression he always wanted the ball in crunch time, or was disempowering Tatum/Brown because he wanted the spotlight. Marcus did a lot of things to help this team win a lot of games over the years, and other players will have to step up to replace him. I think his shortcomings were used as an easy scapegoat to avoid the harder questions (Tatum and Brown playing poorly during stretches of the playoffs), and I guess Porzingis can easily fill that role.

I agree on Porzingis, the big note on him is the one you include: he's essentially never been on a serious team. That doesn't mean he won't succeed, but we know Smart can be a 30 minute a game guy at the highest level....we just hope Porzingis can.

As others noted, Luka is so ball-dominant (and the people who have left him such a growing list) I also wouldn't overweight that experience. Most players are neither 'winners' or 'losers' and will be fine in the right ecosystem---odds are that is where Porzingis is too. But it's TBD

wade boggs chicken dinner · Jun 22, 2023

I would have loved to hear the conversations in the Cs FO about this. While I understand why the trade was made, it also has the potential to go south. Just stockpiling talent doesn't always work - there are roles that have to be played. People have to sacrifice their games to win championships, and it will be interesting to see how MB and KP play.

mcpickl said:
What a fantastic trade for Memphis.

Getting Smart for a tiny bench PG and two non premium firsts is a heist.

Hate it for the Celtics obviously

At least Celtics fans will finally appreciate Smart this year after he’s gone.

Devastated

With regards to the bolded, if the Cs are setting themselves up to be a second-apron team for a while (which I think they are), from everything I've heard, the value of draft picks have skyrocketed as the new CBA is basically saying that the only way teams will be able to improve is by drafting and developing well.

I'll also point out that if it's true that 2nd apron teams won't be able aggregate talent inbound or outbound, then the other issue is that once the Cs reach the 2nd apron, parlaying Smart's slot in KP's slot is a good thing. I know BOS could have done it with MB or DW as well but they kind of had to do it now given KP's contract.

BigSoxFan · Jun 22, 2023

Kliq said:
I think people are overrating Porzingis. The trade has a really high ceiling for the Celtics because when Porzingis is healthy and engaged he is a dynamic player that can add a lot on both ends of the floor.

How are people overrating him? Your second sentence here states what everyone else is saying - he’s an impact player when healthy. We’re talking about a career 20/8/2 guy with 36% from downtown, which spiked to 39% last year. Seems like the perfect #3 offensive option for a team with championship aspirations and a guy who can easily go for 25+ on a given night if one of the Jay’s is out.

HomeRunBaker · Jun 22, 2023

Jed Zeppelin said:
I think the idea that Marcus was trying to make up for other players not wanting to take the big shot is overblown.

Defenses collapse on Tatum and Brown which leaves someone on the perimeter open, and if the defense is disciplined, that someone tends to be the worst shooter on the floor aka Smart.

People still talking about Smart being this godawful shooter after he shot and scored very efficiently these entire playoffs. Were we all watching the same games? I hear that "game winning shot" that Smart was forced to take.....and nobody mentions that he actually made it! Our defense is going to look a lot different next season when teams exploit mismatches without Smart being around to defend and keep bigs from gaining deep position in the paint. I like the deal as part of a restructure of both the roster and our salary configuration past next season, and i DO feel that this was primary about the latter and Jaylen's future deal....but it's a bold move Cotton, lets see how it works out for Brad.

benhogan · Jun 22, 2023

Mueller's Twin Grannies said:
He is on record as saying Smart is one of his favorite people to play with.

Hasn't Tatum kind of said that about TimeLord, Payton Pritchard, Al Horford, Jaylen Brown, Blake, and even Grant Williams in the past?

boca · Jun 22, 2023

In the most simple terms this is why I'm ok with this trade -

This team needed a shake up.

It's had ample opportunities to get over the line with it's current core.

We weren't winning a championship just running it back.

Tatum is the only untouchable asset in my eyes.

Jed Zeppelin · Jun 22, 2023

HomeRunBaker said:
People still talking about Smart being this godawful shooter after he shot and scored very efficiently these entire playoffs. Were we all watching the same games? I hear that "game winning shot" that Smart was forced to take.....and nobody mentions that he actually made it! Our defense is going to look a lot different next season when teams exploit mismatches without Smart being around to defend and keep bigs from gaining deep position in the paint. I like the deal as part of a restructure of both the roster and our salary configuration past next season, and i DO feel that this was primary about the latter and Jaylen's future deal....but it's a bold move Cotton, lets see how it works out for Brad.

I never said he was godawful, I said he was often the worst shooter on the floor, which is true.

Nick Kaufman · Jun 22, 2023

Seems like a good trade at the cost of a very likeable player who also brought a lot of intangibles (as much as I am not a fan of the concept).

What the Celtics really need the next few years is injury luck. Perhaps the new assistant coaches can be aggressive with the regular season rotations making sure to DNP players in order to get some rest.

Justthetippett · Jun 22, 2023

boca said:
In the most simple terms this is why I'm ok with this trade -

This team needed a shake up.

It's had ample opportunities to get over the line with it's current core.

We weren't winning a championship just running it back.

Tatum is the only untouchable asset in my eyes.

I don't really understand the "needed a shake up" position. This team was good enough to win this year, made the ECF despite their coach and primary motivator creating a major distraction, and likely would have been back in the Finals if Tatum hadn't played G7 on one leg. Trading Smart is a much bigger risk, culturally and for what they do on the floor, than Brogdan. I don't think they needed to trade him, but they must see something in KP that makes it worth it. It's a gamble.

HomeRunBaker · Jun 22, 2023

benhogan said:
Hasn't Tatum kind of said that about TimeLord, Payton Pritchard, Al Horford, Jaylen Brown, Blake, and even Grant Williams in the past?

And he loves his coaches too! If Tatum learned one thing from Kobe it was PR-speak.

Jed Zeppelin · Jun 22, 2023

The trade will REALLY tip in our favor when age and injury decline decimate Golden State next year.

benhogan · Jun 22, 2023

HomeRunBaker said:
People still talking about Smart being this godawful shooter after he shot and scored very efficiently these entire playoffs. Were we all watching the same games? I hear that "game winning shot" that Smart was forced to take.....and nobody mentions that he actually made it! Our defense is going to look a lot different next season when teams exploit mismatches without Smart being around to defend and keep bigs from gaining deep position in the paint. I like the deal as part of a restructure of both the roster and our salary configuration past next season, and i DO feel that this was primary about the latter and Jaylen's future deal....but it's a bold move Cotton, lets see how it works out for Brad.

If you're going to like the Bradley Beal trade for the Suns (which was the right move for PHX) not sure how you can not like KP + 2 firsts for Smart (plus Gallinari carcass)

If White didn't absolutely play his azz off last year, the C's don't move Smart. BUT White outplayed Marcus the entire regular season and playoffs. Sounds like a handful of Celtic fans are still digging in & can't get past White > Smart.

While cold & calculating, this trade improved the team's upside talent, dramatically increased the draft assets, and bettered the roster construction, while addressing the CAP/future obligations. Not sure how you can't give Brad another "A" on a trade.

HomeRunBaker · Jun 22, 2023

Jed Zeppelin said:
I never said he was godawful, I said he was often the worst shooter on the floor, which is true.

I know i quoted you but was referencing the group-think on the subject of Smart's shooting that we heard all playoffs and not necessarily you specifically, sorry. Between his 55% TS% in these playoffs his switchability over White and Brogdon made him indispensable in the 4Q....I expect that much of the deadline talk will center around finding a big guard who can switch the PNR without help that compromises the entire defensive set. Don't get me wrong, i'm for the trade and Porzingis...but think much of it is contracts and the business of the NBA too. I just feel Marcus is really going to be missed in the playoffs next year.

AB in DC · Jun 22, 2023

Imbricus said:
I don't see how any "Grade the Trade" gives the Celtics less than an A- (and even that I would view as a harsh grade). If the new post-CBA currency is draft picks, well, the Celtics got two good ones. I really think Brad's genius is this GM'ing stuff. He's like a shark with an "aw shucks" grin -- he saw Washington dumping value at cheap prices and closed in, looking for a steal. All he needed was Memphis to overvalue Smart a bit, and boom.

It does seem like people are valuing two late firsts a lot more than I am. Personally I'd viewed them as roster filler only. Can you expand on this? I've obviously missed something here.

Kristaps Porzingis to Celtics!!!!!

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