Celtics trade for Brogdon, bolstering their backcourt
Brad Stevens thought the Boston Celtics needed another playmaker and more depth to win their first NBA title since 2007-08.
He may have found both with one big move Friday.
Boston’s president of basketball operations acquired combo guard Malcolm Brogdon from the Indiana Pacers for five players, all backup forwards, and a 2023 firstround pick, a person familiar with the deal told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the deal cannot officially be announced until next week.
Stevens, who grew up in Indianapolis and coached Butler not far from the Pacers home court, accomplished two key goals by getting Brogdon.
“I think the way that teams work together and operate together are fragile,” Stevens said after the Celtics lost to Golden State in the NBA Finals in six games. “And I think your identity as a team, when you find one that’s successful — which we did this year on the defensive end of the floor and when we were at our best sharing the ball offensively — those things are fragile. So just to add (players) doesn’t mean that you’re not taking something away from the group.”
Brogdon appears to be a perfect fit in a backcourt that already features NBA Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart, Jaylen Brown and Derrick White, who played a key role in Boston’s postseason run.
And now they’ve added a leader who averaged 19.1 points, 5.9 assists and 5.1 rebounds last season.
Brogdon’s biggest problem has been staying healthy. Injuries limited him to just 36 games in 2021-22 and the 29-year-old hasn’t played more than 56 games since he joining Indiana in 2019.
Stevens didn’t give up any of his key pieces, either. The Pacers get veteran Daniel Theis, Aaron Nesmith and Nic Stauskas — former first-round picks — Juwan Morgan and Malik Fitts. In addition to ading Theis’ physical presence, the Pacers also now have $31 million in salary cap room and will have three first-round picks next summer if the Cleveland Cavaliers make the playoffs.
The deal came as no surprise in Indiana.
After acquiring Brogdon in a trade with Milwaukee, the Pacers thought he could be a franchise building block only to have those injuries creep in. Instead, his fate was essentially sealed when Indiana acquired point guard Tyrese Haliburton from Sacramento at the midseason
trade deadline.
It quickly become clear Indiana intended to rebuild around Haliburton, making Brogdon expendable.
Many thought he would be dealt on draft night, but when the Pacers didn’t get the expected value, they waited.
“We’re always going to be aggressive, but there’s always certain price points,” general manager Chad Buchanan said after the draft. “Sometimes you have to walk away from deals if it’s not right for your team.”
So the Pacers drafted wing Bennedict Mathurin with the sixth overall pick and took point guard Andrew Nembhard and Kendall Brown in the second round.
They may not be finished, either. Two-time NBA blocks champion Myles Turner has long been rumored to be on the trading block and with so much salary cap room, the Pacers could continue to make a splash either in free agency or the trade market.
JAZZ TRADE GOBERT TO TIMBERWOLVES
For Utah, one era is ending.
For Minnesota, one seems to be beginning.
The Jazz have agreed to trade Rudy Gobert — a three-time defensive player of the year — to the Timberwolves for a massive package of players and draft picks, according to a person with knowledge of the blockbuster deal.
Utah will receive four first-round picks between 2023 and 2029, a first-round pick from this year’s draft in Walker Kessler, along with Patrick Beverley and Malik Beasley, according to the person who spoke to The Associated Press on Friday on condition of anonymity because the NBA had not approved the deal and neither team could announce it publicly.
ESPN, which first reported the trade, also said Jarred Vanderbilt was going from Minnesota to Utah as part of the deal for Gobert — who now gets paired
alongside another elite big man in Karl-Anthony Towns.
“5 firsts .. Sheeeeeshhhhh,“New Orleans guard CJ McCollum posted on Twitter.
Indeed, it is a slew of assets for the Jazz, who made the playoffs in each of the last six seasons and now seem to be resetting in multiple ways. Quin Snyder decided to depart last month after eight years as coach; the Jazz hired Will Hardy, a longtime San Antonio assistant and an assistant for Boston on its run to the Eastern Conference title this past season, to take over on the bench.
And now, Gobert leaves, officially ending his pairing with guard Donovan Mitchell in Utah — an on-court relationship that seemed really good at times, and strained at other moments. And a series of disappointing playoff exits led to the annual question of whether the two could coexist on a title-contending team.
Gobert is part of a new duo now: Twin Towers in the Twin Cities.
LAVINE, NURKIC STAY PUT
Zach LaVine is staying in Chicago. Same goes for Jusuf Nurkic in Portland.
Day 2 of NBA free agency on Friday brought another max deal — this time, going to LaVine, who secured the richest contract in Bulls history when he agreed to a $215 million, five-year contract.
LaVine technically was a free agent, for about 18 hours. Klutch Sports, which represents LaVine, made the announcement of the max agreement, with the Bulls able to offer the Olympic gold medalist and two-time All-Star $56 million more than any other club could this summer.
Nurkic got by far the biggest payday of his career, agreeing to a four-year, $70 million contract with Portland. The center just completed his eighth NBA season, the last six of those coming with the Trail Blazers, for whom he averaged 15 points and 11.1 rebounds this past season.
Mitchell Robinson is another big man not moving elsewhere, agreeing Friday to a $60 million, four-year contract to remain with the New York Knicks.
There are some players who will be changing addresses. Danilo Gallinari, according to a person familiar with his decision, intends to sign a two-year deal with the Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics — once his waiving by the San Antonio Spurs is completed. Gallinari was sent to San Antonio this week in a trade that brought All-Star guard Dejounte Murray to Atlanta.
Also on the move: Bruce Brown Jr., a guard who has decided to leave Brooklyn and sign with Denver on a two-year deal worth just over $13 million. Brown averaged a career-best 9 points per game this past season for the Nets.
Another deal that was put into motion earlier in the week was completed, when five-time All-Star John Wall — bought out by the Houston Rockets — announced he had agreed to a two-year deal with the Los Angeles Clippers. Wall was under contract for $47.4 million this season, got bought out by Houston for about $41 million, and will get the $6.4 million difference from the Clippers. Wall hasn’t played in the NBA since April 2021, and has appeared in 82 games, including playoffs, over the last 4 1 / 2 seasons.
The champion Golden State Warriors brought back one of their key free agents, retaining Kevon Looney — who appeared in all 104 of the team’s games this past season — on a three-year deal that could be worth about $26 million if the final year becomes fully guaranteed. But another two rotation pieces went elsewhere; Gary Payton II is headed to the Portland Trail Blazers and Otto Porter Jr. is signing with the Toronto Raptors.
LaVine’s agreement was at least the fifth deal of at least $200 million struck since free agency opened on Thursday. The others all came on Day 1, going to Nikola Jokic ($264 million extension in Denver), Bradley Beal ($251 million contract to stay in Washington), Devin Booker ($224 million extension with Phoenix) and Karl-Anthony Towns ($224 million extension with Minnesota).
And a sixth deal could very easily join that $200 million club: Memphis’ Ja Morant agreed to a $193 million extension that could reach $231 million based on what awards he qualifies for this coming season.