BOSTON, MA — The Boston Celtics announced Friday that they have acquired forward Marcus Morris from the Detroit Pistons in exchange for Avery Bradley and a 2019 second-round draft pick.
“It’s no secret that Avery had been one of my favorite players, and on behalf of our entire organization, I’d like to thank him and Ashley for all of their contributions on and off the court,” said Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge. “Avery did a lot of the dirty work and often didn’t get the recognition that he deserved, but our coaches, staff, his teammates, and our fans who watched him play every night appreciated what a special player and person he is.”
Continued Ainge: “We are excited to add a high quality player with the versatile skillset that Marcus possesses. He will be a great fit for our team.”
A six-year NBA veteran, Morris, 27, has averaged 10.8 points (42.8% FG, 35.5% 3-PT, 71.7% FT), 4.2 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 26.2 minutes over 416 career games (218 starts) with Houston, Phoenix and Detroit. He is one of 20 NBA players to have averaged at least 13.9 points, 4.5 rebounds and shoot at least 33.0% from beyond the arc in each of the last two seasons.
In 79 games with Detroit in 2016-17, Morris (6-9, 235 lbs) averaged 14.0 points (41.8% FG, 33.1% 3-PT, 78.4% FT), 4.6 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 32.5 minutes. The University of Kansas product and Philadelphia, PA native produced career highs in points (14.1 ppg), rebounds (5.1 rpg), assists (2.5 apg) and minutes played (35.7 mpg) with the Pistons in 2015-16. His 2,856 minutes played that season ranked fifth throughout the NBA.
Selected by the Celtics with the 19th pick in the 2010 NBA Draft, Bradley averaged 12.1 points (44.2% FG, 36.6% 3-PT, 77.2% FT), 3.1 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1.08 steals and 28.1 minutes in 413 career games (340 starts) with Boston.
