Trade

Boston Celtics

BOSTON, MA –&nbsp;The Boston Celtics announced today that the team has acquired guard Jrue Holiday from the Portland Trail Blazers in exchange for guard Malcolm Brogdon, center Robert Williams, and two future first-round draft picks.

“We are excited to see Jrue in a Celtics uniform. He plays the game with a great competitive character and his impact on and off the court has been felt everywhere throughout his career. We are overjoyed to welcome Jrue, Lauren, and the entire Holiday family to Boston,” said Brad Stevens, Celtics President of Basketball Operations.

Holiday (6’5, 220) has played in 906 career games (825 starts) over 14 NBA seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks (2020-23), New Orleans Pelicans (2013-20), and Philadelphia 76ers (2009-2013). Holiday owns career averages of 16.4 points, 4.1 rebounds, 6.5 assists, and 1.5 steals in 33.1 minutes per game, while shooting 46.2 percent from the field and 36.6 percent from the three-point line. Among all active NBA players, Holiday ranks sixth in total assists (5,868), 11th in steals (1,346), and 18th in points scored (14,876), and also owns the sixth-most rebounds among league guards (3,702).

Last season, Holiday earned his third-consecutive and fifth career NBA All-Defensive team selection after averaging 19.3 points, 7.4 assists (9th in NBA), and a career-high 5.1 rebounds in 67 games (65 starts). He was also named a 2023 NBA All-Star, marking the second All-Star selection of his career after being selected in 2013, which is the longest gap between All-Star selections in NBA history.

Holiday helped lead the Bucks to the 2021 NBA Championship title by averaging 17.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 8.7 assists in 23 postseason contests (all starts). Less than a month after winning the 2021 NBA Finals, Holiday won a Gold Medal with Celtics’ guard Jayson Tatum and Team USA at the Tokyo Olympics where he averaged 11.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 3.8 assists per game.

Holiday has won the Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year Award in three of the last four NBA seasons. The award recognizes him as the best teammate based on selfless play and dedication to his team, as well as leadership on and off the court as a mentor and role model to other players as voted on by his peers.

In his first season with Milwaukee, Holiday won the 2020-21 NBA Sportsmanship award, which honors a player who best represents the ideals of sportsmanship on the court, and was a finalist for the inaugural Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Champion Award.

Jrue and his wife Lauren Holiday won the 2023 Muhammad Ali Sports Humanitarian ESPY Award for their community efforts. The Chatsworth, California native earned Pac-10 All-Freshman Team Honors in his one collegiate season at UCLA before being selected by the Philadelphia 76ers with the 17th overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft.

“It’s been our pleasure to have a front row seat to Rob’s career since he joined us on draft night 2018. He has grown into a wonderful basketball player and teammate. We thank him for his many contributions on and off the court in his five years in Boston and we wish him and his family all of the best as they move on,” said Stevens.

Williams, originally drafted by the Celtics with the 27th overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft, appeared in 209 career games for the franchise where he averaged 7.3 points, 6.9 rebounds and 1.7 blocks in 20.5 minutes per game.

“Malcolm had a great season last year culminating in the tremendous honor of receiving the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award. We wish him and his family nothing but the best moving forward,” said Stevens.

Brogdon averaged 14.9 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists while shooting 44.4 percent from three last season for the Celtics en route to winning the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award.

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Boston Celtics Acquire Jrue Holiday

Marc D'Amico

Kristaps Porzingis sits down for an exclusive conversation with Marc D'Amico about his arrival in Boston and why he wanted to join the Celtics.

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Kristaps Porzingis Arrives in Boston

BOSTON, MA –&nbsp;The Boston Celtics announced today that the draft night trades that were previously agreed upon June 23, 2023 have been completed. Boston acquired the draft rights to forward Jordan Walsh, who was selected with the 38th overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft. The Celtics have also acquired the following second round draft picks as part of the transactions involving Washington, Memphis, Detroit, Charlotte, Sacramento, and Atlanta:

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Boston Celtics Complete Trades

Let me tell you a little something about Marcus Smart.

That dude is one of the best people to walk through Boston’s doors. Ever.

He’s a hustler. A leader. A blue-collared, mean-muggin’ dog who fears absolutely no one.

He’s a philanthropist. A community beacon. A man who truly moves the needle for children around the country, and in particular, those who are suffering from pediatric cancer.

He is a Boston Celtic through and through, and that’s never going to change, regardless of what jersey he'll be wearing next season.

Smart was traded to Memphis during the early hours of Friday morning as part of a three-team deal that brought former All-Star Kristaps Porzingis to Boston. The move came as a shock to many, simply because Smart has been synonymous with the Celtics for nearly a decade.

Smart arrived in Boston back in 2014, as he recently explained in an Instagram post, as “a naïve kid from Dallas not really knowing what to expect.” What he and the Celtics did know at that time was that he possessed loads of promise both on and off the basketball court. It was just a matter of how much of that promise would be fulfilled.

Nine years later, it’s safe to say that the Celtics and the city of Boston couldn’t be happier with how it all turned out.

Smart departs the only professional organization and city he has ever known as a former Defensive Player of the Year, as a former de facto Celtics captain, and as an overpowering presence in Boston’s community.

Truthfully, he surpassed all hopes and expectations that came along with him back in 2014. He made an overwhelming impact on every level, and for that, Celtics Nation is incredibly grateful. I am incredibly grateful. His presence will be sorely missed.

The basketball resume he put together in Boston speaks – no, screams – for itself. Smart made the NBA playoffs during each of his nine seasons with the team, including five trips to the Eastern Conference Finals and one trip to the NBA Finals. The team had a positive net rating with him on the floor during every season of his career, a remarkable statistic given the fact that Boston went 25-57 the season before he arrived, and 40-42 during his first season.

Along the way, he helped the Celtics and their fan base log memory after memory of success. He is a key piece of the puzzle that turned the team from a rebuilding project into a contender in the blink of an eye.

Smart also departs the Celtics ranking fourth in franchise history in 3-pointers made, third in steals, and 11th in assists, all while making three All-Defensive First Teams.

Smart’s effort off the court rivaled, and somehow may have even surpassed, his effort on the court. He was constantly out in the community, appearing at countless Celtics events while also growing the roots of his own foundation right here in Boston. One of the most exciting days of the calendar was always when Smart would visit a local children’s hospital to lift the spirits of young patients.

It just doesn’t get any better than those smiles that he brought to those faces.

It must also be mentioned that throughout his tenure, Smart always made himself available to the general media – and in particular, to us at Celtics.com. Want to bring him on the podcast? Done. Need him for a pregame interview? He’s in. Want to write a story on him that requires interviews with his family and friends? He’s got you covered with their contact info.

Some of this might sound a bit bland, but in the world of the NBA, this type of access and humility doesn’t always exist. People like Marcus Smart don’t always exist. The fact that he was here and giving his all, in this way, for this long, can't be taken for granted.

As Smart said the other day, goodbyes are hard. It’s difficult to say goodbye to a player and person who had woven himself so deeply into the fabric of this organization over the past nine years. But as the old saying goes, all good things must come to an end - especially in this league, when the Celtics are one of 30 teams that spend every day trying to get better.

Smart wasn’t always perfect, but he really was the perfect Celtic. He’ll always be revered in this city. He'll always be known as a Boston Celtic.

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In Love and Trust: An Ode to Marcus Smart

Taylor Snow

The Unicorn and the Leprechaun united Thursday night, turning fantasy into reality.

Kristaps Porzingis is officially a Boston Celtic.

The former All-Star center/forward was acquired by the C’s in a Draft Night blockbuster deal involving the Memphis Grizzlies and the Washington Wizards.

Along with Porzingis (via Washington), the Celtics also landed the No. 25 pick in the 2023 Draft (via Memphis) and a 2024 first-round pick (via Memphis, via Golden State). Through a series of trades that have not yet been finalized, the C’s will be turning the 25th pick into five second-round picks – the 38th pick of the 2023 Draft, with which they acquired the draft rights to Arkansas forward, Jordan Walsh, along with four future picks.

The Wizards obtained Tyus Jones (via Memphis), Danilo Gallinari (via Boston), Mike Muscala (via Boston), and the No. 35 pick in the 2023 Draft (via Boston). The Grizzlies received Boston’s biggest chip in the trade: Marcus Smart.

The loss of Smart, the heart and soul of the team for the last nine seasons, is gut-wrenching from an emotional standpoint and one of the most difficult decisions that President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens has ever made. But from a business standpoint, getting a player of Porzingis’ caliber is a massive win for the Celtics.

The 7-foot-3 Latvian comes to Boston with eight years of NBA experience under his belt, boasting career averages of 19.6 points, 7.9 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.8 blocks, and 1.8 3-point makes per game. He’s also coming off the best season of his career, which included marks of 23.2 PPG (career-high), 8.4 RPG, 2.7 APG (career-high), and 1.5 BPG, along with shooting clips of 49.8 percent from the field (career-high) and 38.5 percent from long range. His 65 games played represented his highest total since his 2016-17 sophomore season with the New York Knicks.

Ironically, his last game in a Wizards uniform came against the Celtics on March 28 when he led Washington to a 130-111 win with a stat line of 32 points, 13 rebounds, six assists, one block, one steal, and zero turnovers.

“He has just gotten better and better and better,” Stevens said of Porzingis during the wee hours of Friday morning after the completion of the Draft. “You see what he was doing this year, and I thought the games that we played against him and the games that I watched with the most intent against other teams, I thought he just had really taken another step. He was already good, but he just took another step.”

Aside from his suburb statistics, Porzingis’ playing style should make for an excellent fit on this Celtics roster.

For one, he’ll bolster Boston’s previously thin frontcourt, providing support alongside Al Horford and Rob Williams. He could get paired in a double-big lineup with either of those guys, or he could play the standalone 5.

Offensively, Porzingis is capable of scoring from anywhere on the floor and has the potential to be the first 20 PPG big man that the Celtics have had in some time.  He was the league's leading post scorer last season on a per-possession basis, while also ranking No. 2 among 7-footers in 3-point makes (137).

“We didn’t post a ton this year,” said Stevens, “but to be able to throw the ball in the post and just shoot over a switch and do it so efficiently and effectively is a big deal, let alone being able to play behind the line, shoot the ball or drive it or those types of things. He brings a lot to our team.’

Porzingis’ ability to space the floor could allow him to form a lethal pick-and-pop combo with both Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, and he should be able to play his game without stepping on their toes and dipping too much into their scoring production. It’ll also be helpful to have another star scorer on the floor when one or both of the Jays are on the bench.   

Not only is Porzingis one of the premier scorers at the rim, but he’s also one of the best at protecting it. He’s blocked 100-plus shots in five out of his seven seasons (he missed the 2018-19 season with a torn ACL), using his lateral quickness and height to track players to the basket and alter their shots. He was also the fourth-ranked pick-and-roll defender in the NBA last season behind Anthony Davis, Steven Adams, and Giannis Antetokounmpo. And he finished in the 99th percentile in both rim points saved and defensive field-goal percentage vs. expected.

The timing of this trade couldn’t have been any more perfect because, as his previous season suggests, Porzingis may be just starting to peak. He’s only 27 years old, so his best years could still be ahead of him.

With Porzingis alongside 26-year-old Brown and 25-year-old Tatum, the Celtics now have a legitimate trio of stars who are just about to enter their respective primes.

Now, that really is a fantasy turned into reality.

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In Adding Porzingis, Celtics Gain Another Star Entering His Prime

Now that the Boston Celtics have officially acquired Malcolm Brogdon from the Indiana Pacers, they officially have the most versatile backcourt rotation in the entire NBA.

That’s right – with the addition of Brogdon, the Celtics now have three starter-level guards who can play both backcourt positions, at both ends of the floor, at a very high level.

Simply put, no other NBA team possesses this type of two-way, lead-guard versatility with players who are in their prime.

Brogdon is set to team up with Marcus Smart and Derrick White to create a three-headed, two-way monster for Boston. All three players can defend multiple positions, all three players have received All-Defensive team votes within the last three-plus calendar years, and all three players boast career averages of at least 10.5 points and 3.8 assists per game.

This trio will give head coach Ime Udoka unlimited options in the backcourt, and that doesn’t even account for the presence of Payton Pritchard, who has proven himself to be one of the top 3-point marksmen in the league who can also dig in at the other end.

Brogdon joins the Celtics after splitting his first six seasons between the Milwaukee Bucks and the Indiana Pacers. He carries career averages of 15.5 points, 4.8 assists and 4.2 rebounds per game with him to Boston.

The guard is one of only nine players in NBA history who has logged a 50/40/90 shooting season (he did so in 2019), and he’s known as a strong playmaker with the ball in his hands. Brogdon, who is 6-foot-5 with a 6-foot-11 wingspan, has also been regarded throughout his career as a high-level defender; he was the collegiate Defensive Player of the Year in 2016, and he received All-Defensive Team votes as recently as 2019.

Those who know anything about the NBA already know that the Celtics already possess two other versatile, two-way guards in Smart and White. Those two guards helped to propel Boston to within two wins of a championship this past season.

Smart stands in at 6-foot-3 and is the NBA’s reigning Defensive Player of the Year. He has averaged at least 10.2 points and 4.6 assists during five of his last six seasons, and he logged a career-best 5.9 assists per game last season. Smart has led Boston in assist average during each of the past three seasons.

White, meanwhile, joined Boston midseason and lived up to his reputation as an elite defensive weapon who can also make plays at the offensive end of the floor. At 6-foor-4, he is considered by many to be one of the top perimeter defenders in the league, and he has averaged at least 11.3 points per game during each of the past three seasons.

All three players received All-Defensive votes in 2019. Smart, the DPOY, and White received votes this past season as well.

The versatility that Smart and White brought to the table this past season, combined with Pritchard’s elite shooting, gave opposing teams anxiety. Now that Boston has added Brogdon into the mix, that level of anxiety is sure to bump up another couple of levels.

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Brogdon Addition Gives C's Three-Headed, Two-Way Guard Rotation

BOSTON, MA - The Boston Celtics today announced that they have acquired guard Malcolm Brogdon from the Indiana Pacers in exchange for center Daniel Theis, guard/forward Aaron Nesmith, forwards Malik Fitts and Juwan Morgan, guard Nik Stauskas and a 2023 first round draft choice.

“We would like to welcome Malcolm and his family to the Celtics,” said Celtics President of Basketball Operations, Brad Stevens. “We are very excited about what Malcolm brings both on and off the court. His resume speaks for itself. He is the kind of playmaker, shooter, and impact defender that we need in our continued pursuit of Banner 18.”

Brogdon, a 6’5” guard, led the Pacers in scoring last season with 19.1 points, along with 5.1 rebounds and 5.9 assists in 33.5 minutes per game. The former Virginia Cavalier joins the Celtics after spending the previous three seasons in Indiana where he averaged 18.9 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 6.3 assists while shooting 35.2 percent from three over 146 games. Brogdon is one of four active players in the NBA to have recorded 5,000 or more points, 1,500 or more assists, and 500 or more three-pointers in fewer than 350 games. The Atlanta, GA native spent the first three seasons of his career in Milwaukee where he was honored as the NBA’s Rookie of the Year during the 2016-17 season. In his final season in Milwaukee, he became just the eighth player in NBA history to achieve a 50-40-90 season (shooting better than 50 percent from the field, 40 percent from three and 90 percent from the free throw line) when he shot 50.5/42.6/92.8. A member of the NBPA Executive Committee as a Vice President, Brogdon was honored by the PBWA with the 2019-20 J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship award for his commitment to education, gender, and health equality as well as his support for criminal justice and voting reform through the Brogdon Family Foundation.

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Celtics Acquire Brogdon

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  addPhoto("https://publish.nba.com/celtics/sites/celtics/files/theisuntitled-3.jpg", "Daniel Theis during his first stint with the Celtics", "Ezra Shaw/Getty Images", "theis");

Brad Stevens’ first trade deadline rolled around Thursday afternoon, and he didn’t hold back. The Celtics’ President of Basketball Operations agreed to terms on three trades ahead of the 3 p.m. deadline, which included seven players going out, two players coming in, as well as some swapping of future draft picks.

Boston acquired a skilled playmaker in Derrick White and reacquired a hard-working, floor-spacing, versatile big in Daniel Theis. Both additions bring tenacity and versatility on the defensive end, which should make this year's top-ranked defense even more fearsome.

Boston’s front office got warmed up with a small deal in the early afternoon, trading Bol Bol, PJ Dozier, cash considerations, and a conditional future second-round draft pick to Orlando in exchange for another conditional future second-rounder.

Neither Bol nor Dozier – who are both recovering from major surgeries – had a chance to play a game for Boston after being acquired together in a trade on Jan. 19. However, in trading them, it helped the Celtics financially by delaying the start of a potential repeater tax scenario in future years as the team builds around Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum.

Later in the evening, the Celtics finalized their second trade of the day, reacquiring Theis from the Houston Rockets in exchange for Bruno Fernando, Enes Freedom, and Dennis Schroder.

Theis spent his first three-plus seasons in Boston before being traded to the Chicago Bulls ahead of last year’s trade deadline. Through 26 games (21 starts) this season, he has averaged 8.4 points and 5.0 rebounds per game.

Finally came the big splash of the day, as the C’s traded Josh Richardson, Romeo Langford, and a protected 2022 first-round pick to San Antonio in exchange for White. As part of the deal, the Spurs also have a conditional right to swap first-round picks with Boston in 2028.

Up until Thursday, White had spent his entire five-year career with the Spurs and is in the midst of arguably his best season. Through 49 games (48 starts), the 27-year-old has averaged 14.4 points, 3.5 rebounds, 5.6 assists, and 1.0 steals per game. He’s also blocked the second-most shots among all NBA guards this season with 42 swats.

There’s also an extra silver lining in acquiring the veteran combo guard, being that he is already familiar with many faces on the Celtics roster.

White’s first two NBA seasons overlapped with Celtics head coach Ime Udoka’s last two seasons on Gregg Popovich’s staff, and he spent four seasons with C’s assistant coach Will Hardy. Udoka also coached White with Team USA during the 2019 FIBA World Cup. Jaylen Brown, Marcus Smart and Jayson Tatum were all members of that national team as well, so White already has on-court experience with the bulk of Boston’s core.

From his time with White, Tatum observed and recalled Friday morning, "He's a really high-IQ basketball player, very gifted offensively, a great defender, and just somebody you love to have on your team.”

On top of those connections, Stevens had been eyeing White for several years, viewing him as a player who could help maximize the Jays’ talent.

“We've thought for years that Derrick was a really good fit with our best players,” Stevens said Friday morning during a conference call with the media. “He is an excellent defender. He just makes the right play, on offense, over and over and over. He's a guy that only cares about winning, that will do all of the little things, as you can see in some of his stats, defensively, with regard to willingness to put his body on the line, activity, shot challenges, all of those things. And, on offense, just by making simple plays and doesn't need to do anything to be on the highlights, to really, really impact winning.”

As Celtics fans already know, Theis is another player who impacts winning. The 6-foot-8 German center was often lauded for his team-first approach throughout his previous tenure in Boston, during which he averaged 7.2 PPG and 4.9 RPG while shooting 55.4 percent from the field and 34.5 percent from 3-point range.

Stevens initially didn’t expect to make a move for Theis but was thrilled to have a deal materialize during the final 20 minutes ahead of the deadline.

Adding Theis gives the Celtics some frontcourt insurance should either Al Horford or Rob Williams miss any time, and he will be a solid backup otherwise.

“Rob and Al are our guys and they're playing great but if you miss any time with those two guys, you can plug Theis in and it'll be a seamless transition,” said Stevens. “Theis knows how to make our best players better, that's the best thing he does is he has a great feel for making others around him better, he's got a savvy for the game.”

Although the deadline has passed, the Celtics are not even close to being done making moves. Due to the lopsided nature of their trades with regard to outgoing players versus incoming players, they still have several roster spots to fill. Stevens said the team will look to add multiple “skilled” players in the coming days to round out the roster, including at least a couple of moves he anticipates making before Friday night’s tip-off against the Denver Nuggets.