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Celtics Address Multiple Needs with Malcolm Brogdon Trade

Malcolm Brogdon averaged 19.1 points, 5.9 assists, and 5.1 rebounds last season.

Author:
Bobby Krivitsky
Jul 1, 2022 2:17 PM EDT

The Celtics, who will reportedly sign Danilo Gallinaro using their taxpayer mid-level exception once he clears waivers, have made an even more substantial move as they reshape their roster.

According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, Boston is acquiring Malcolm Brogdon in exchange for a 2023 first-round pick, Aaron Nesmith, Daniel Theis, Malik Fitts, Juwan Morgan, and Nik Stauskas.

Working to put the necessary pieces around Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown to raise banner 18 to the TD Garden rafters, it's the third-straight Celtics' first-round pick Brad Stevens traded since succeeding Danny Ainge as the team's president of basketball operations.

Brogdon comes with durability concerns, having not played 65 games since his rookie season, but coming off the bench places him in a less taxing role.

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Provided the Celtics keep Marcus Smart, which seems likely, adding Brogdon solves multiple needs for Boston. He's a reliable ball-handler, including under pressure, who's never averaged more than 2.4 turnovers. For his career, the six-year veteran's coughing the ball up just 1.8 times per game.

Brogdon doesn't just take care of the ball; he effectively runs an offense, as evidenced by his 5.9 assists per contest in the last two seasons and 7.1 in 2019-20.

He also gives the Celtics more scoring off the bench. The now-former Pacer's generating 15.5 points per game for his career, producing 19.1 last season and 21.1 the year before.

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He can play on and off the ball, and while he struggled from beyond the arc in 2021-22 (31.2 percent), he's a career 37.6 percent three-point shooter on 4.2 attempts. In 2020-21, he launched 6.7 threes per contest and converted them at a 38.8 percent clip.

His shooting will also benefit from playing alongside Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, especially when he gets opportunities to share the floor with both.

And at six-foot-five, Brogdon brings more size to a team with a starting lineup filled with players tall for their position. That not only helps him defensively but, on the glass, as well. He averages 4.2 rebounds per game for his career, and he's corralled more than five each of the last two seasons after grabbing 4.9 in 2019-20.

Brogdon, who turns 30 in December, is on an expiring contract that will pay him $22.6 million next season, per Spotrac. That also reflects the Celtics still have their $17.1 million trade exception at their disposal, should they wish to utilize it to add depth on the wing or at the center position.