NBA Draft Rumors: Marcus Smart trade grade, Tobias Harris rumblings, Scoot-Blazers
By Mark Powell
NBA Draft Rumors: Marcus Smart traded from Celtics to Grizzlies
In a late-night shocker, the original trade which sent Kristaps Porzingis to the Boston Celtics was voided at the last minute. Porzingis is coming off his best — and perhaps more importantly — healthiest season in quite some time. He averaged over 23 points per game with the Washington Wizards, and will add a nice scoring punch to an already-talented Celtics team.
Below is the full trade, as we now know it:
The trade grades here are more complicated, but the Celtics were able to gain more first-round picks for Marcus Smart than the Wizards for both Bradley Beal and Kristaps Porzingis combined. If that’s not the sign of a veteran front office, I don’t know what is.
Smart will fit right in with the Grizzlies, who already feature a former defensive player of the year in Jaren Jackson Jr. Smart is a better version of Dillon Brooks, who could merely annoy opponents, but not back it up. Smart is a legitimate ball-stopper defensively
As for the Wizards, it’s unclear what this accomplishes beyond clearing salary. Jones is a nice piece, and Gallinari can score. Muscala and the No. 35 pick should serve as depth pieces. If the goal for Washington is to bottom out, they are doing a great job at it.
Trade grade: Boston wins