According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, following the failed deal involving the Los Angeles Clippers, the Boston Celtics and Washington Wizards have reached an agreement involving the Memphis Grizzlies. The deal will send the 7-foot-3 power forward/center to Boston before the Wednesday night deadline.
Deal Details
As part of the trade, the Celtics will send point guard Marcus Smart to Memphis, while the Wizards will acquire Grizzlies guard Tyus Jones. Additionally, the Grizzlies will send the 25th pick in the first round of Thursday’s NBA Draft and an additional first-round pick in the 2024 draft (via Golden State) to Boston.
In exchange, the Celtics will trade the 35th pick in Thursday’s draft, along with Mike Muscala and Danilo Gallinari, to the Wizards. Porzingis has agreed to exercise his $36 million player option for the next season to facilitate the trade.
The Grizzlies are acquiring Smart, knowing that their All-Star player Ja Morant will be suspended for the first 25 games of the 2023-24 season. The news of this trade came shortly after Wojnarowski reported the breakdown of a proposed three-way trade involving the Clippers.
Kristaps Porzingis’ Stats and Transfers to Date
Porzingis will now join the Celtics, a team that finished second in the Eastern Conference during the regular season but lost to the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference finals. After making consecutive trips to the conference finals, including an NBA Finals appearance in 2022, Boston is determined to win an NBA championship.
Last season, Porzingis, aged 27, averaged 23.2 points, 8.4 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.5 blocks in 65 games. He shot 49.8% from the field and 38.5% from beyond the arc. His scoring average was a career high, surpassing his previous All-Star campaign in 2017-18 with the New York Knicks when he averaged 22.7 points per game.
Porzingis brings offensive versatility and defensive presence to the Celtics. He can alter shots both on the perimeter and in the post. He will join a front line that includes veteran starter Al Horford and All-Defensive Team center Robert Williams III, alongside All-NBA forward Jayson Tatum.
Three-way trade
Earlier on Wednesday, Wojnarowski and Shams Charania of The Athletic reported that the Celtics, Wizards, and Clippers were close to finalizing a three-way trade, which ultimately did not materialize. Initially, the Wizards were supposed to receive Marcus Morris and the No. 30 pick in Thursday’s draft from the Clippers, while the Celtics would have sent Malcolm Brogdon to the Clippers.
The collapse of the trade was attributed to the Clippers’ concerns about Brogdon’s injury history. Additionally, the Clippers would have sent Amir Coffey to the Wizards, and the Celtics would have sent Gallinari to the Wizards in the proposed deal.
