New Blockbuster Three-Team Trade Idea Sends Rudy Gobert to Celtics, Jaylen Brown to Timberwolves

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. One of the more underrated storylines throughout the offseason has been Boston's lack of a strong option at center. It seems likely that AL Horford will either retire or leave in FA following Boston's decision to move on from Kristaps Porzingis. The 2026 draft class is not expected to be very strong for centers, so the Celtics could be in a difficult position upon Tatum's return if they can't find a playable option at the 5.

The Timberwolves were one of the more expensive rosters in the NBA, but they've made moves to give themselves some breathing room under the second apron. If they can cut salary while staying competitive, that could be a really interesting prospect for Minnesota. They were heavily linked to Kevin Durant because they needed a second creator to complement Anthony Edwards and they still haven't found that. Therefore, what if they made another blockbuster trade for a star by adding Jaylen Brown?

To be clear, Boston isn't actively looking to make a deal for Brown. He's going to be the presumptive leader of the team next season with Tatum out and he's been vital to their success since his sophomore season in 2017-18. That being said, he's on one of the most expensive contracts in the NBA and the Celtics have been looking to free up some more flexibility in their cap sheet. If they can get a long-term solution to their center problem as a result of moving on from Brown, that might be enough for them to pull the trigger on a Brown trade.

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.

Minnesota Timberwolves Receive: Jaylen Brown, 2027 1st-round pick (via BOS, top-10 protected) 2026 2nd round pick (via BOS, from ATL), 2031 2nd round pick (via ATL)

Boston Celtics Receive: Rudy Gobert, Mike Conley, Vit Krejci, 2028 1st-round pick swap (via MIN), 2032 1st-round pick swap (via MIN)

Why the Hawks would do this deal: DiVincenzo has been one of the better high-volume shooters from deep in the NBA over the past three seasons. In 2024-25, he shot 39.7% from deep on 7.1 attempts per game and posted an above-average TS% of 58.2%. DiVincenzo isn't entirely one-dimensional either - he posted a career-high AST% of 20.2% and took on more facilitation duties than he did in his previous roles. Although the Hawks were 4th in 3P% after the trade deadline, they still finished the season 18th in 3P%. Atlanta already added shooting this offseason by acquiring Luke Kennard and Porzingis, but DiVincenzo would still be a welcome addition considering how effective he was in the postseason for the Knicks.

Why the Hawks would not do this deal: Although DiVincenzo was a big part of the Knicks' playoff rotation, he was much more inconsistent with Minnesota, posting a putrid 49.3 TS% and averaging 8.7 points across 15 playoff games. He's a high motor defender and he can get into passing lanes, but he isn't an especially strong isolation defender.

Why the Timberwolves would do this deal: Minnesota has struggled to make it to the Finals in part because the other team's defense can sell out to stop Anthony Edwards while the rest of the team slumps on offense. Another offensive creator would do wonders for the Timberwolves' offense and Jaylen Brown might be the perfect fit. Few players are as battle-tested in the playoffs as Brown and he has a Finals MVP to back up his postseason play. He's not the most consistent shooter, but he still averaged 22 points, 5.8 rebounds and 4.5 assists last season on 46.3/32.4/76.4 shooting splits in a relative down season last year. They already drafted Gobert's replacement this year in French center Joan Beringer and he's had a strong Summer League. Given that they just signed Naz Reid and need to add a second creator to complement Edwards, it may be the right time to move on from Gobert while he still has value.

Why the Timberwolves would not do this deal: Brown isn't a consistent floor spacer and the double-big lineups with Reid and Gobert have been central to Minnesota's identity in recent seasons. Furthermore, the Wolves would also be placing Beringer into a large role in his rookie year, which comes with a ton of risk.

Why the Celtics would do this deal: While the Celtics would likely be one of the weaker teams in the 2025-26 season, that increases their chances of getting a high pick in the 2026 draft and re-loading around Tatum with a cheaper core. Gobert is an excellent regular season player because of his consistently solid rim protection numbers and his defensive intelligence. He'd be able to weaponize Tatum as a roaming help defender once he returns from injury and the Timberwolves center is also a solid rebounder in his own right. Conley is an experienced veteran point guard who still has a little bit left in the tank. He still remains a great shooter from deep, hitting 41% of his threes on 4.4 attempts per game, and his contract expires after this year. Despite being 6'8 and listed as a wing, Krejci can function as a point guard, finishing with a good AST% of 17.5% and a career-low TOV% of 13.8% despite tying his career-high USG% of 12.9%. He remained effective in limited doses as a scorer, shooting 43.7% from deep on 3.6 attempts per game and a staggering 57% on midrange shots this season.

Why the Celtics would not do this deal: Gobert isn't the easiest player to accomodate in the playoffs because he's a complete non-entity on offense and very reliant on ball-handlers to set him up. Last season, his BLK% was 2.3% (73rd percentile), his fgOR% was 11.3% (78th percentile) and his fgDR% was 20.1% (68th percentile). While solid, all of those numbers were either at or above the 90th percentile the season prior. There's no value to doing this deal if Gobert can't remain a high-level defender throughout the life of his contract, and there's a chance that he won't be able to deliver on that. Conley is also unable to provide any value on defense given his age and size. Boston's been a strong two-way team throughout their contention timeline and Brown has been critical to that identity. Since they aren't getting any unprotected firsts to add to their draft capital stash, there's a chance this just isn't the deal they're looking for.

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