New Blockbuster Three-Team Trade Idea Sends Anfernee Simons to Clippers, Bogdan to Celtics, Hawks Get Two-Way SF

Although it's always difficult to predict exactly how the offseason will affect the upcoming NBA season, it seems clear that the Eastern Conference is going to be up for grabs. The Indiana Pacers won the conference last year in one of the most surprising championship runs in recent memory, but they are going to be without Tyrese Haliburton for the year. The Boston Celtics have always been a force in the Eastern Conference, but Jayson Tatum went down with an Achilles injury in the second round and will miss the upcoming season. The Bucks made a big move to add Myles Turner, but they had to cut Damian Lillard to do it. In short, the only three teams that seem to be locks for postseason returns are the New York Knicks, Orlando Magic and the Cleveland Cavaliers. That leaves an opportunity for several teams to take advantage.

The Atlanta Hawks are certainly doing their best to seize that opportunity. After trading for Celtics big man Kristaps Porzingis and drafting Georgia power forward Asa Newell, Atlanta reached a pair of huge free agent signings. The Hawks signed a marquee free agent in Wolves guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker to a four-year, $62 million deal in a sign and trade that sent a 2027 2nd-round pick (via CLE) to the Wolves. Then, the Hawks signed free agent guard Luke Kennard to a one-year, $11 million deal. They also got an unprotected first-round pick from the New Orleans Pelicans in a draft-night trade. Given the massive injuries in the Eastern Conference next season, it seems that the Atlanta Hawks are going for it and making moves to put themselves in position to contend. One area they could still use some depth is at small forward or another ball-handler.

Boston has been aggressively cutting salary in an effort to field a cheaper team next season while dealing with the effects of missing Tatum for the entirety of the 2025-26 season. It would likely be ideal for the team to be under the luxury tax threshold if they are not in contention, but they still want to have talent for Tatum to utilize upon his return in 2026-27. Therefore, any moves that cut salary in 2026 while having future upside could be interesting for the Celtics. They also don't have a real stand-in for Tatum on the roster outside of Georges Niang at the moment, but Niang's defensive concerns will prevent him from taking on a big role for Boston.

The Clippers have quietly positioned themselves to be, barring injury, one of the five best teams in the Western Conference next season. The trio of James Harden, Ivica Zubac and Kawhi Leonard, plus a strong defense featuring Kris Dunn and Derrick Jones Jr, was enough to take the Denver Nuggets to seven games last season. This summer, they added some size in their front court by signing Brook Lopez from the Bucks and swapping Norm Powell out for John Collins. However, Powell was a big part of their offense during the regular season and they might want to acquire a player that can fill his role. Simons could be an interesting option for them.

So how about a trade where each of these teams tries to fill a need?

It should be noted that this is just a speculative and fun exercise to see what kind of moves can be made, not what I think the Hawks or any other teams should do or will do. That is all.

Hawks Receive: Derrick Jones Jr

Clippers Receive: Anfernee Simons, Georges Niang, Mo Gueye, 2027 1st-round pick (via BOS, top-5 protected), 2029 1st-round pick (top-10 protected)

Celtics Receive: Bogdan Bogdanovic, Kobe Brown

Why the Hawks would do this deal: Derrick Jones Jr was an excellent signing by the Clippers last offseason - he was a massive part of the 2024 Mavericks' run to the Finals due to the standout defense the 6'6 forward plays and parlayed that into his first season with the Clippers. He takes on extremely difficult matchups on the wing and still finished with a career-high 2.6 defensive win shares. Jones isn't a standout shooter, but he made a respectable 35.6% of his threes on limited volume and he has experience playing off a dominant playmaker from his time with Luka Doncic and James Harden. He'd be an easy fit in Atlanta's lineup and would form a dominant perimeter defense alongside Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Dyson Daniels with either Kristaps Porzingis or Onyeka Okongwu protecting the rim. Still under contract for the next two seasons at a reasonable $10 million dollars per year, the Hawks could fit him into their $11 million dollar trade exception without increasing their payroll.

Why the Hawks would not do this deal: While Jones is a good player, the Hawks already have tons of wings that they need to find minutes for. Sending out a first-round pick for a player that may not get extensive run on your team is a difficult proposition, even if the pick is top-8 protected.

Why the Clippers would do this deal: If the Clippers made this move, they'd have replaced their biggest departure in Powell without losing the size advantage they now have due to the trio of Zubacs, Collins and Lopez. Simons scored 19.3 points and dished out 4.8 assists on 42.6/36.3/90.2 shooting splits while being the only reliable scorer in Portland's backcourt last season, but it's highly likely that he'd be able to reach more efficient splits playing off Harden. Whether it's Powell or Tyrese Maxey from Harden's time on the 76ers, the shooting guard that plays off Harden generally has really good numbers and Simons could put up big numbers for Portland during the regular season, easing the demand on Kawhi Leonard. Niang has experience playing with Harden from his time in Philly and his catch-and-shoot trigger would be a nice replacement for Bogdanovic. Gueye is an interesting development project - he showed exciting defensive chops last season in Atlanta. He posted a BLK% of 3.3% (87th percentile) and a STL% of 2.3% (96th percentile). Gueye needs to cut down on fouls, but there's a chance he could develop into a nice backup big man who can slide in at either the 4 or 5 as a standout defender. Playing Collins and Gueye together puts two lob threats on the court for Harden to utilize while they'd be retaining some of the defense lost by Derrick Jones' departure. LA also adds two first-round picks to its barren cupboard of draft assets and moves off Bogdanovic's money to create even more cap space in the 2026 offseason.

Why the Clippers would not do this deal: Jones Jr was instrumental to their defense last season and they may not want to move on from him for two defensive liabilities in Simons and Niang.

Why the Celtics would do this deal: After a down first half for the Hawks, Bogdanovic improved his shooting numbers with the Clippers, ending the season shooting 42.7% from deep on 4.8 attempts and averaging 11.4 points. He's an underrated passer and although he had his struggles in the postseason, there's a good chance he can be a positive contributor for a Celtics team that takes a ton of three-pointers and will be losing a shooter with size in Jayson Tatum next season. Kobe Brown is a solid flyer for Boston to take, especially given that they need more size in the frontcourt and the 6'7 Brown is still trying to prove he can be a NBA-caliber rotation wing. They also get below the luxury tax threshold, hence why they are giving up a first-round pick to make this happen.

Why the Celtics would not do this deal: That 2027 first-rounder could be a good pick if Tatum's return doesn't go as planned and the Celtics still need some scoring due to Tatum being out. Simons isn't a fit with the supersize lineups Boston used to run, but they may need his production to stay afloat in the Eastern Conference. Furthermore, Bogdanovic's money does affect Boston's books for next year and the long-term money might dissuade them from taking his deal on.

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