Getty Boston Celtics' Al Horford (left) and Marcus Smart (right).
You need stars to win in the NBA. Thankfully, the Boston Celtics have two of them, boasting arguably the league’s most talented one-two punch in their All-Star duo of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. Yet, despite their presence, the team has hovered around a .500 record since the start of 2020. Some basketball pundits will say that’s enough time to warrant breaking up the star-studded tandem. To those — we say, not so fast.
As franchise legend Paul Pierce noted during a November 19 appearance on Sports Illustrated’s “The Crossover NBA Show with Chris Mannix and Howard Beck,” it’s all about “putting the right pieces around your great players,” not separating said players. With that in mind, it may be time for Brad Stevens and company to take a swing at adding a third horseman to the mix if Boston truly wants to compete with the elites in the East. Having said that, such a move wouldn’t come without its fair share of notable casualties.
Proposed Trade Swaps 3 Celtics for Pascal Siakam & Goran Drogic
It’s fairly well known that Boston doesn’t have the greatest slew of young, intriguing trade chips at their disposal — at least ones they’d be willing to part with. What they do have are two proven commodities in point guard Marcus Smart and the age-less Al Horford. Bleacher Report’s Grant Hughes proposes the team unloads the two veteran starters in a trade package to acquire the services of Pascal Siakam and Goran Dragic from the Toronto Raptors. Here’s how the proposal shapes up in the eyes of the B/R columnist:
- Boston Celtics Receive:
- Pascal Siakam
- Goran Dragic
- Toronto Raptors Receive:
- Marcus Smart
- Al Horford
- Romeo Langford
It feels wrong to boot Marcus Smart from the Boston Celtics. The fiery defensive dynamo has been a key factor in four conference finals appearances and, despite persistent overconfidence in his shot, has done far more good than harm during his eight seasons with the team. That said, Smart is no star. Same goes for Al Horford, whose minutes this year have coincided with a minus-7.3 net rating.
They depart in exchange for Pascal Siakam, giving the Celtics a fearsome, fully switchable, kinda-sorta centerless look that could help unlock new dimensions on both ends. Siakam has won a ring and made an All-NBA team in 2019-20. He’s played a career-high 41 percent of his minutes as a small-ball 5 and is far more mobile than Horford. His assist percentage is quietly right on track to match that of the Boston big man this season.
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