BOSTON — Before I talk about the trade that sends Kristaps Porzingis and two first-round picks to the Celtics for Marcus Smart, Danilo Gallinari, and Mike Muscala, I want to first say thank you to the ultimate Celtic.
Thank you for your hustle night in and night out, bringing back the defensive intensity missing after Kevin Garnett left, and for embracing your community on and off the court.
Thank you for speaking your mind, all the clutch shots – even when you shouldn’t have taken them, and for making the playoffs every year despite being drafted to a 25-57 team.
Thank you for winning Defensive Player of the Year, keeping the locker room intact, and being a true professional. Thank you for making me feel connected to something, and for being my favorite player.
Smart has been one of the mainstays on these Celtics teams that have made the postseason each of the last nine seasons. He’s one of 10 Celtics to never miss the postseason. The list includes McHale, Russell, Cousy, Heinsohn, Bird, and other greats.
Teammates – and opponents even – say he’s the heart and soul of every game. Smart, this past season, won the NBA Hustle Award, an award given to one who “best utilizes hustle to help their teams win on a nightly basis” according to the NBA.
The award uses hustle stats like loose-ball dives, charges, screen setting, and contesting shots. The award has been around since the 2016-17 season, and Smart is the only player to win it three times.
Smart epitomized what it meant to wear the green. He embraced it – lived it, even.
Now onto the trade itself. Taking emotions out of it, it’s the first of many moves according to Brad Stevens. With the new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) and a crowded backcourt, it made sense the Celtics were going to move one of Derrick White, Smart, or Malcolm Brogdon.
Most believed it was going to be Brogdon, who would get the short end of the stick, and it seemed likely after the Celtics were in discussion to send Brogdon to the Clippers in a three-team trade before LA backed out of the deal.
After the Clippers fell through, the Celtics and Wizards continued to discuss a trade that would send Porzingis to Boston. The issue was that Porzingis had to opt in or out of his player option by 11:59 p.m. Wednesday. With time ticking away, the Celtics and Wizards got the Grizzlies on the phone, and the trade was made. Memphis gets Smart, which allows him to be the starting point guard while Ja Morant serves his 25-game suspension. The Wizards get Tyus Jones, Gallinari, Muscala, and a second-round pick, while Boston receives Porzingis, a 2023 (25) first-round pick, and a 2024 first-round pick.
Putting my general-manager hat on, this is a good trade that comes with a bit of a risk for Boston. Receiving two first-round picks and Porzingis is more than fair for Smart, but the risk surrounds Porzingis’ health.
Porzingis is coming off of a relatively healthy season in Washington in which he played in 65 games – the most he’s played in the last six seasons. If Porzingis can play another 65 games and stay healthy throughout the playoffs, he should fit like a glove.
Porzingis gives Boston the frontcourt depth it’s needed in recent years. Not only does ‘The Unicorn’ bring size to the Celtics, but also range. In his career, Porzingis shoots 35.9 percent from three while this past season, his numbers were up to 38.5 percent. With him playing next to Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, he will get more stationary threes, which could see him shoot closer to 40 percent come the fall.
It’s rumored Grant Williams is unlikely to be in Boston next season, which means the Celtics could be losing two big-time defenders in Smart and Williams. With Porzingis, he’s not going to make an all-defensive team, but should provide a defense similar to Robert Williams as sort of a free safety of the defense.
All that said, whether Boston makes more moves or not, I don’t think the Celtics are done making them in an attempt for banner 18.
To Marcus Smart, best of luck in Memphis, and thank you for everything.
