This summer, the Boston Celtics made the bold and daring decision to trade their heart and soul point guard from the better part of the past decade Marcus Smart to acquire stud big man Kristaps Porzingis. With this transaction, the hope is that the club has now inched closer to claiming banner number 18.
Though the 27-year-old has already made it clear that he does not wish to even attempt to try and “replace” the beloved guard, in a recent story posted on his personal Instagram account, the power forward did note that he’s looking toward the 2023-24 season as having the potential to be the “best” of his career.
“May the next season be my best season ☘️”
Kristaps Porzingis is ready to go to work for the Celtics 👀
(via @kporzee / IG)
Coming in on his ninth season in the association, Kristaps Porzingis has already proven himself to be one of the best frontcourt talents in the game today.
Boasting an astounding combination of size (7-foot-3 with a 7-foot-6 wingspan) and shooting capabilities (boasts a 35.9 percent 3-point shooting clip for his career), the man nicknamed “Unicorn” is an established All-Star who is coming off a phenomenal 2022-23 campaign where he posted stellar per-game averages of 23.2 points, 8.4 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.5 blocks while shooting 49.8 percent from the field and 38.5 percent from distance.
With this in mind, should Porzingis’ desire to see a career-best season come about this upcoming campaign, the Celtics could realistically wind up having him, along with Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, heading out to Indianapolis for the 2024 All-Star Game.
Jayson Tatum Dishes on Celtics, Damian Lillard Rumors
Though the Kristaps Porzingis blockbuster was certainly splashy, some such as Heavy Sports NBA insider Steve Bulpett suggest that the Celtics may not be done making waves on the trade market.
Easily the biggest name linked as being a possible trade option for Boston is Portland Trail Blazers superstar Damian Lillard. However, despite these rumblings, Jayson Tatum has publicly admitted that he is not involved in recruiting the prolific veteran.
“Nah. I ain’t got nothing to do with that,” Tatum said, per Ball Don’t Lie’s Twitter account.
Jayson Tatum has “nothing to do with” recruiting Dame to Boston 🤫
Should Lillard land with the Celtics, many such as sports analyst Bill Simmons of The Bill Simmons podcast believe it would provide the 33-year-old with his best-ever odds of contending for a championship.
Celtics ‘Could Inquire’ About Former Top-20 Pick
With their recent sign-and-trade that shipped Grant Williams to the Dallas Mavericks, the Celtics have now created a new $6.2 million traded-player exception (another summer, another exception).
With this luxury, there is any number of possibilities that could come about, and NBC Sports Boston’s Chris Forsberg recently suggested the idea of Brad Stevens and company pursuing the 20 pick from the 2020 NBA Draft, Precious Achiuwa with it.
“Boston could inquire about Achiuwa, who is entering the final year of his rookie deal,” Forsberg wrote. “The soon-to-be 24-year-old might cost a bit more but would provide depth up front where the Celtics have health concerns.”
Precious Achiuwa dropped a career-high 27 PTS and 13 REB in the Raptors W 💪
Precious Achiuwa has displayed an impressive combination of athleticism and raw defensive instincts that could prove to be a smart investment for a Celtics team that could use more frontcourt reinforcement considering they currently have a rather questionable assortment of talents such as Kristaps Porzingis (injury-prone), Robert Williams III (injury-prone), and Al Horford (will be entering his 17 season in the association).
This past season, Achiuwa went on to post a solid statistical season, averaging 9.2 points and 6.0 rebounds while shooting 48.5% from the field through 55 games.
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Kristaps Porzingis Reveals First-Year Hopes With Celtics