If the Kemba Walker trade was any indication of the mindset of Brad Stevens as new Boston Celtics president of basketball operations, the team will make even more deals this offseason and the former head coach won’t waste any time getting things done.
No knock-on Danny Ainge, but Stevens simply didn’t play around when it came to sending Kemba’s bad contract out of town. Shoot, the Celtics barely just finished the season, and the NBA Finals didn’t even start before trader Brad delivered a blockbuster.
The question is, was that just the first shoe to drop?
Boston Celtics: Brad Stevens will do what he needs to do to improve team
In explaining his decision to move Walker, Stevens relayed that it was nothing personal, but a deal that needed to be made to clear the path for future moves that could improve the team while not putting a strain on them financially.
"“There are near-term decisions that can help you improve,” Stevens said back in June, via Boston.com. “And there are longer term decisions that you have to make with the idea of being in the mix. Ultimately, we want to be in the mix.”"
Obviously, with a new head coach in Ime Udoka in place, the 2021-22 version of the Boston Celtics will be different. How different is the question.?
After adding versatile veteran big man Al Horford back to the mix, the challenge for Brad Stevens is to surround his two young stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown with the type of talent and support that will allow their games to blossom further.
But what do the Celtics have left as far as trade assets after already trading Walker and their 2020 first-round pick? Who could land them an impactful player who will make the team better next season?
Along with some of the young talent and future draft picks, here are the three biggest trade centerpieces to use in possibly the next blockbuster deal.
The promise of Boston Celtics big man Robert Williams
As much as Boston Celtics fans want to see the Time Lord flourish in green, he is certainly a player who would and should be included in any trade conversation when it comes to a blockbuster deal.
Now, it would be nice if the athletic big man grew into a big piece of the team’s core (he averaged 15.2 points, 13.1 rebounds per-36 minutes) moving forward, but injuries seem to halt any consistency in his presence on the court. When health Robert Williams looks like he can be an absolute stud.
Both his high-energy and rim protecting makes him the perfect complement to scorers like Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, but he just can’t stay on the court which is becoming more of the trend in his early career rather than just a stint of bad luck.
So, would his battle with injuries prompt Brad Stevens to pull the trigger on involving him in a deal?
As far as receiving a star player in return, he would have to be a part of any package. The team could also use him as a bargaining chip to move back into the first round of the 2021 NBA Draft. That has indeed been rumored and if there’s a player the team really likes, they should make the move.
On the flip side, athletic big men are hard to come by these days in the NBA. If Robert Williams developed any kind of shot, he could emerge into an absolute force. There’s a reason the team was 12-3 when he played more than 22 minutes in a game. But health is an obvious concern.
Boston Celtics rumors: There’s a “Really good market” for Marcus Smart
Another player most Boston Celtics don’t want to part ways with is probably their biggest trade asset as far as bringing a good player in return without parting ways with either Jayson Tatum or Jaylen Brown.
As the team’s longest tenured player, the 27-year-old Marcus Smart is entering the final year of his contract and really has become the heart and soul of the Celtics over the past few years.
A defensive warrior on the court, Smart does frustrate fans with his shot selection at times, but his intensity typically creates winning plays. Now, fans nor the team saw much of that in 2021, which is why perhaps moving Smart is the wisest mood at this time.
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With the Celtics linked to just about any star who is rumored in a potential trade, Smart’s name is typically included in any package because of what he could add to contending teams around the league.
The Atlanta Hawks, Portland Trail Blazers and Golden State Warriors have already been teams linked in potential trades for Smart. But can they give the Celtics anything back in return that would be of greater value than.
Unless that player is Bradley Beal or Damian Lillard, any move may be second guessed, but according to The Ringer’s Bill Simmons, something is going to go down with Marcus Smart whether a contract extension or a trade.
"“My feeling is either Marcus gets extended or traded, but it’ll happen in the next six weeks and it’ll be one or the other,” Simmons said on his podcast in early July. “And I would lean toward the extension, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they traded him for, I don’t know, the seventh pick with the Warriors. …The 7-9 range is probably his value because I do think contending teams really value him because they’ve seen him in three conference finals teams. They know he could be a fourth or fifth guy on a really good team.”"
What will Brad Stevens do? As Smart is considered a piece of the puzzle in Boston, he might be an odd fit when it comes to playing with Tatum and Brown. If Stevens and new Celtics coach Ime Udoka feels the team would be better trading him, that is exactly what Stevens will do.
Boston Celtics All-Star Jaylen Brown will be the center of any package
The biggest trade asset not named Jayson Tatum is obviously Jaylen Brown.
If the Boston Celtics hope to add Damian Lillard or Bradley Beal, the first-time All-Star will most likely have to be included if the intention is pairing any of those stars up with Tatum.
Of course, the ideal scenario would be a big three involving either of those two with Tatum and Brown.
But is that realistic?
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If you are a team like the Trail Blazers or Washington Wizards, you are going to want a young stud like Brown back in any deal, unless those stars, particularly Beal is forcing his way to Boston.
In a scenario like that, the Celtics could send a package involving Marcus Smart, Al Horford, young players like Romeo Langford and Aaron Nesmith and a package of draft picks to create a new big three.
Besides either Lillard or Beal, and Lillard is questionable given his age, the Celtics shouldn’t listen to any trade involving Jaylen Brown unless it brings back a star like a Karl-Anthony Towns and Celtics legend Cedric Maxwell certainly agree with that.
During an appearance on “Sports Sunday,” Maxwell was asked who he would move Jaylen Brown for. Beal was a no, Lillard interestingly was a yes and Towns got a big endorsement.
"“I’d do that,” Maxwell said, via NBC Sports. “I’d do that because again, I have a contrast. What I know is Karl-Anthony Towns is mean. When’s the last fight you saw in the NBA? That was Karl-Anthony Towns and the guy down in Philadelphia (Joel Embiid), and you’re going ‘Wow, those two guys fought? You don’t see that in the NBA.”"
Well, fighting isn’t the main reason for making a deal for Towns, but a stretch big man who can battle with Embiid would solve one of the team’s biggest issues while adding a new element to that Celtics-76ers rivalry.
Unfortunately, Brown would be the price to make that happen as he would be in uniting childhood friends Jayson Tatum and Bradley Beal in Boston. That’s unless, Stevens pulls off a major heist and somehow gets a star to Boston with the tandem of Tatum and Brown still intact.