Boston Celtics #2: The Celtics trade the bench for sharpshooter Malcolm Brogdon.
Didn’t this article say the Celtics got better without gutting their nucleus? Yes, it did. But how can trading five players and one draft pick for Malcolm Brogdon not be considered that? Well, pay attention here, if you will.
The players that were sent away, Aaron Nesmith, Daniel Theis, Nik Stauskas, Malik Fitts, and Juwan Morgan, didn’t exactly light up the scoreboard during their time in Boston, nor did they play big minutes. They were mostly there to fill out the bench, and Boston will likely find players to replace them on the free agent market without breaking too much of a sweat.
Moreover, none of them had as much of an impact on the team as Brogdon will. 19.1 points on average last season with the Pacers, along with 5.9 assists and 5.1 rebounds. It’s not great, but certainly not bad either. It’s actually quite good, and if they had had Brogdon on their roster last year, there’s a good chance the Celtics could have forced the series to seven games or even pulled off the upset.
Now that the transactions are complete, let’s take a look at the top. The main reason why the Boston Celtics improved during the offseason. Although you might know what it is, just read on.