Source: Marcus Smart sign-and-trade is 'very unlikely'

LAS VEGAS -- The Marcus Smart free agency saga is quickly approaching the three-week mark, and a fresh batch of reports are now making the rounds about possible suitors for the point guard.

Two days after Smart and his agent Happy Walters were seen meeting with Nets general manager Sean Marks in the upper deck of Thomas and Mack Arena, Yahoo Sports reported on Thursday that the Nets and Grizzlies have inquired about a sign-and-trade possibility with the Celtics guard.

The idea of a sign-and-trade is a welcome development from Smart’s standpoint. Since only four teams (Brooklyn, Sacramento, Atlanta, Chicago) have more cap room than the mid-level exception to maneuver with, a sign-and-trade would seemingly open the door for more lucrative opportunities elsewhere for Smart (since the C’s can sign Smart for any amount with their Bird Rights and then trade him as long as the deal is three-plus years).

However, a source indicated to BostonSportsJournal.com that a sign-and-trade involving Smart

with any team is highly unlikely. Here’s a closer look at why it would be tough to appease all the sides involved in such a transaction.

It’s conceivable that a team would want to pay Smart more than the Celtics (let’s say $12 million a year) to lock him up over a long-term deal. However, the idea of a team offering him a salary that high (which would be needed to appease Smart’s current salary demands) and giving up an asset on top of it to Boston does not make much sense for an interested team.

Think about it from the perspective of a squad like Memphis or Brooklyn. Neither one of these franchises are contending for a title next season anyway, so why would they give up an asset and a hefty contract for the point guard now when it is very possible that Smart will be an unrestricted free agent next summer (after signing qualifying offer)? Chasing him next year would allow them to bring aboard the guard without giving up compensation.

Of course, if Smart lowers his salary demands, he would have more suitors for this type of trade scenario. However, a cheaper deal would be just as appealing to the Celtics to match, since it would lock in a role player on a good deal over the long term. Therefore, Danny Ainge would surely demand a rotation piece or a draft pick in exchange for facilitating any sort of deal with Smart with reasonable terms. Ainge and Brad Stevens have repeatedly acknowledged how much the team values Smart, so they aren’t going to let him go anywhere unless it helps the franchise.

The additional complicating factor of a hypothetical sign-and-trade is that Smart would qualify as a base level compensation player. That distinction makes the trade math even trickier than usual to navigate. Essentially, it makes salary matching in a swap harder since Smart’s salary would only count as 50 percent for Boston’s salary matching purposes.

While the Nets and Grizzlies have players that would interest the Celtics and could make the money match for a Smart sign-and-trade (JaMychal Green, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson), it makes no sense for those teams to give up those players just so they can sign Smart to a big deal.

The far more realistic scenario for a team like Brooklyn to successfully pursue Smart is opening up more cap room to try to sign Smart outright to an offer sheet that Boston might not match. Even that feels like a long shot at this stage of free agency, though. The Hawks have publicly stated that they plan on using their cap room in the trade market (to gain assets for taking on bad contracts). The Kings are reportedly uninterested. The Bulls just spent a huge chunk of their cap space on Zach LaVine. Smart's prospects for money look worse and worse.

Due to these realities, the waiting game will continue for both sides, likely for a while unless Smart lowers his demands. The rumors will continue to pop up about potential sign-and-trades, but don’t put much stock into them for the time being.