The Boston Celtics have been one of the best teams in the entire NBA this season. After winning the NBA title last year, Boston has seemed to pick things back up right where they left off.
With the strong core in place, Boston isn’t likely to make any drastic moves ahead of the trade deadline next year. But if the Celtics wanted to make any moves, they would be limited due to the new CBA restrictions.
However, in the unlikely event that a big move was to take place, Boston would need to trade away one of their core players. In this new trade scenario, the Celtics trade away point guard Jrue Holiday in exchange for a star big and more wing depth.
The deal would involve the Los Angeles Clippers and Utah Jazz. Here is what a deal could look like:
Clippers receive: Jrue Holiday and John Collins
Jazz receive: P.J. Tucker, Derrick Jones Jr., Terance Mann, a 2025 first-round draft pick from the Celtics, a 2026 first-round draft pick swap from the Celtics, a 2030 first-round draft pick from the Clippers, a 2026 second-round draft pick swap from the Celtics, a 2026 second-round draft pick from the Clippers, and a 2031 second-round draft pick from the Clippers
Celtics receive: Walker Kessler and Norman Powell
The Clippers would get more win-now pieces to maximize their Kawhi Leonard and James Harden era. Los Angeles would land a true point guard to run the show alongside Harden and Holiday would bring more veteran experience to the table. Collins would provide more size and depth for the Clippers as well, making them more formidable in the Western Conference.
The Jazz would receive a very nice haul for two players while getting off the contract of Collins. The Clippers 2030 pick is the big prize here for Utah.
As for the Celtics, moving off Holiday would hurt but this deal would provide them with more financial flexibility. They would get off his $30 million a year deal and land themselves a star center in the making.
With the way that the CBA has things going, the Celtics would be very restricted moving forward without some type of salary dump. Boston would also shore up more playing time for Payton Pritchard as he evolves into more of a key piece in the rotation.
With Kristaps Porziņģis consistently not able to stay on the floor, Boston gets some insurance in the frontcourt. Additionally, they land a player in Powell for the bench, who has shown strong scoring abilities.
All in all, this deal likely wouldn’t happen, But Boston could get themselves more freedom within rotations and in the salary cap if it ever were on the table.
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