By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
The Boston Celtics just made a crucial off-season acquisition after successfully tapping the services of power forward Kristaps Porzingis from the Washington Wizards via a three-team trade.
Boston’s latest move also involved the Memphis Grizzlies and was confirmed by veteran sports insider Adrian Wojnarowski last June 22, 2023.
Initially, the trade proposal was for Malcolm Brogdon to go to the Los Angeles Clippers and power forward Marcus Morris to the Wizards.
Hours after the build-up, the proposal then fell as reports circulated that the Clippers aren’t interested in Brogdon anymore due to his health status.
That paved the way for a new deal after the Celtics pushed for the Porzingis trade but lost their star point guard Marcus Smart who will now be heading to the Memphis Grizzlies.
Washington will then receive back-up point guard Tyus Jones from the Grizzlies including Boston’s Danilo Gallinari, Mike Muscala, and the no. 25 pick of the Celtics in this coming NBA Rookie Draft.
As a part of the Porzingis package, the Celtics will also receive Memphis’ no. 25 Rookie Draft pick and the 2024 first-round pick via the Golden State Warriors.
Porzingis was the fourth overall pick by the New York Knicks during the 2015 NBA Draft ceremony out of Latvia.
A big man who can space the floor due to his stellar three-point shooting and decent perimeter jump shot game, the New York fan base had high expectations from Porzingis the moment he got drafted at the Barclays Center.
However, Porzingis struggled early in his NBA career when he was hobbled by several injuries and couldn’t stay healthy for a full season, the main reason why the Knicks shipped him to the Dallas Mavericks and teamed up with Luka Doncic for a couple of seasons.
Porzingis will be teaming up with Jayson Tatum, Jalen Brown, Al Horford, Robert Williams, and Derrick White and is expected to deliver right away to help the Celtics redeem themselves when they lost at the hands of the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals.