The very moment the Boston Celtics traded Jaylen Brown, the five stages of grief ensued. Denial: This cannot be real. Anger: How could they make a trade like this? Bargaining: This is what this article is about.
Even if this was the best possible trade offer the Celtics received for Brown (after the Giannis Antetokounmpo sweepstakes fell through), there has to be another move. Right? The Celtics have to have something planned.
In all honesty, I don't believe that to be the case. Could there be another move? Absolutely. But even Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe reported that the Celtics made this trade without a secondary one in mind.
This was a trade to trade Brown. Not a trade for Paul George. Not a trade to make another trade. Not a trade to spring another option open. This was done with one motive in mind: Move on from Brown.
But this article is not about the trade for Brown. It's not about how unfathomable the entire situation ultimately ended. And it's certainly not meant to excuse what was an utterly confusing (to put it lightly) transaction. This article's sole purpose is to examine what the Celtics could do next. More specifically, what could come next with George?
George is not a bad NBA player. In the context of a trade for Brown, George, as the sole returning player, is a brutal pill to swallow. With his trade kicker, the 36-year-old is going to make $57.7 million next season and will make even more the next year. But if you take the money out of the equation, George is still a quality NBA player.
Last season, he averaged 17.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.7 steals while shooting 43.9% from the field and 39.2% from deep on 6.9 3-point attempts per contest. For a guy who projects to combine with Payton Pritchard and Derrick White as Boston's second, third, and fourth scoring options behind Jayson Tatum, that's not awful production.
However, he also only appeared in 37 games last year. He was suspended for 25 games for violating the league's anti-drug policy, but his injury history is the real concern. Since the 2018-19 season, George has only played in 60 or more games once.
When he's on the court, he's a solid basketball player. Someone who could not only help the Celtics but also fit well with how they play. The problem is, he's never on the court.
That's the biggest issue when considering potential trade options. George's first season in Philadelphia seemed to go as badly as possible, yet the Sixers kept him around. Last year at the deadline, they kept him around. There isn't exactly a huge trade market for a 36-year-old, injury-prone, $57 million man.
So, if I were to guess, George will be on the roster heading into the season. He'll be wearing Celtics green, most likely as a member of the starting lineup alongside Pritchard, White, Tatum, and one of Neemias Queta or Mitchell Robinson.
But if there were to be trade options out there, what could they look like? How much draft capital would Boston have to attach in a deal? Is there even a team around the league that would be willing to take on George's contract?
© Stephen Lew
Trey Murphy III and Paul George
New Orleans Pelicans
It feels like the Celtics have been linked to Trey Murphy III for months now. First, he was a TPE trade option. Then, he was a Brown trade option. Now, he's still a potential option via a George trade.
In theory, Boston could send George and a ton of draft capital to the Pelicans for Murphy and one of Dejounte Murray or Jordan Poole. Financially, that deal works. But the Celtics would have to include enough draft compensation to account for the New Orleans Pelicans taking on George's contract and the value of Murphy and any other players they receive.
That would almost certainly include both first-rounders they just received in the trade with Philadelphia, as well as at least one of their own firsts. But they would be left with Murphy.
A trade like this feels