Revisiting the Trade that Sent Kristaps Porziņģis to the Boston Celtics

The Boston Celtics dominated Game 1 of the NBA Finals. After running through the Eastern Conference, there were some doubts about the quality of opponents they faced along the way. There were question marks about whether they would be able to do the same against the Dallas Mavericks.

One of the things that wasn’t heavily factored into those questions was how the Celtics were having their playoff success. Rather, the Celtics were having all their success in spite of one key factor: they were missing a massive part of their team.

Kristaps Porziņģis had been missing from the team’s playoff run since the first series against the Miami Heat. He had started 57 games for them in the regular season and had been a key contributor to what made Boston such a great team throughout the year.

In Game 1, he reminded the basketball world just how good he was. Coming off the bench, Porziņģis scored 20 points in 21 minutes in his first game back. Suddenly, everyone was reminded about how smart the Celtics were to acquire him this offseason.

Boston took a massive chance on Porziņģis in the offseason, acquiring him in a three-team trade involving the Washington Wizards and the Memphis Grizzlies. However, looking back on the trade details, it is a little astounding how well they made out.

The Celtics have had a bevy of smart moves leading up to this run to the finals. Derrick White and Jrue Holiday are two other key examples. The Porziņģis trade was another masterpiece.

Celtics Solidify Their Juggernaut

Porziņģis was the perfect Center for Boston to bring in

This is yet another example of a trade where the Celtics made out like gangbusters. The obvious concerns around Porziņģis revolve around his health. He has carried a label as an injury-prone player throughout his career. While those concerns are valid, when Porziņģis plays, he really puts the Celtics over the top.

Porziņģis is the perfect mold of center for what the Celtics are trying to do both offensively and defensively. Offensively, he provides someone that makes their five-out attack lethal. Boston’s calling card offensively has been their shooting and the three-ball. Porziņģis’ ability to stretch the court and excel as a floor spacer makes the way defenses have to cover the Celtics a helpless task, at times.

On top of the value he brings as a stretch option, Porziņģis also converts at an impressive rate near the rim. On shots ranging from zero to three feet from the basket, Porziņģis is converting at a percentage of 75.1. He provides an excellent option to finish offensive possessions down low.

Defensively, Porziņģis’ rim protection makes Boston’s defense so much harder to crack. He is a much more mobile alternative to the thirty-eight year old Al Horford, allowing the Celtics to switch with a lot of comfort on that end.

To think that the Celtics managed to get a guy who fits like a glove and two first-round picks on top of him for what they gave up in this deal, they’re the clear, runaway winners of this trade.

Underwhelming Return For The Wizards

Washington doesn’t have too much to show for this trade

When one thinks back to where Porziņģis’ trade value would have been at the time, the return that Washington received in this trade is unimpressive. The Wizards were clearly positioning themselves for a rebuild, prompting the move, but the return for Porziņģis was lackluster.

Porziņģis was coming off, arguably, his best season as a pro in the NBA. He played the third-most games in his career at 65. In those games, he averaged an impressive 23.2 points (on sound efficiency), 8.4 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks per game.

The good news for the Wizards, the acquisition of Jones gave them a steady and reliable option as their starting point guard.

Jones has been a very effective player for the Wizards upon his arrival. The problem for the Wizards is that he’ll be a flight risk this offseason. Jones will be an unrestricted free agent, leaving Washington with no guarantee that they’ll retain his services moving forward.

Washington turned Gallinari and Muscala into young journeyman Marvin Bagley during this past season. Bagley has been lackluster throughout his NBA career, never really living up to the billing he had as a second-overall pick.

The Wizards had better hope they can re-sign Jones in the offseason. Otherwise, the less said about this trade may be the better.

Grizzlies’ Confusing Role In This Trade

The thought process was understandable, but the value given up is questionable

The acquisition of Smart made a lot of sense for the Grizzlies. Ja Morant was going to miss time due to his suspension at the beginning of the season. They were also short of an enforcer after deciding to move on from Dillon Brooks, who would end up joining the Houston Rockets.

The thought process here is easy to follow. The value given up is a little questionable.

Smart is a former Defensive Player of the Year and a very good NBA player. It’s clear from the value given by the Grizzlies that he was deemed to be the best player in this trade. That title belongs to Porziņģis, not Smart.

Smart didn’t get the opportunity to really showcase himself for the Grizzlies either, suffering an injury that would significantly shorten his campaign. The team will need to wait until the upcoming season to truly evaluate his addition. Assessing things from where they currently stand: the acquisition, in itself, does not seem to be a bad one. The price paid by the Grizzlies remains questionable.

Stats are courtesy of Basketball Reference.

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