Boston Celtics: Danny Ainge's 5 best trades with the Celtics

Boston Celtics: 5 best trades Danny Ainge ever made

BOSTON, MA - FEBRUARY 14: Boston Celtics General Manager Danny Ainge looks on before action between the Boston Celtics and the LA Clippers at TD Garden on February 14, 2018 in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Omar Rawlings/Getty Images) /

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Boston Celtics Isaiah Thomas (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images) /

4. Boston Celtics acquire Isaiah Thomas at the trade deadline (2015)

When Brad Stevens took over as the Boston Celtics head coach during the summer of 2013, the general consensus was that the team was undergoing a massive rebuild, and that it would be several years (at least) before they would even be a playoff team again, let alone a title contender.

But that all changed at the trade deadline in 2015, when Ainge traded for an undersized point guard named Isaiah Thomas.

In just 2.5 seasons in Boston, Thomas etched his name into Celtic lore. He embraced the role of the underdog, serving as the undersized leader of a team without a true superstar. He embraced the City of Boston and took a rebuilding team near the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings and lead them to three consecutive playoff appearances, including a trip to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2017.

Unfortunately, injuries and the infamous Kyrie Irving trade ended Thomas’s time in Boston far too soon. But he remains beloved in Boston to this day, and his legacy lives on through the young players that he mentored, most notably Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart.

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