Celtics reportedly finalize three-way deal to acquire Kristaps Porzingis, send Marcus Smart to Grizzlies

The Boston Celtics are reportedly finalizing a deal to acquire Kristaps Porzingis from the Washington Wizards via a three-way deal that will also send Marcus Smart to the Memphis Grizzlies.

After a three-team trade that included the LA Clippers fell through earlier Wednesday, the teams have re-negotiated another deal just a day before the NBA Draft.

Porzingis will opt into his $36 million contract for 2023-24 in order to facilitate the trade, per ESPN. Memphis will send 2023 and 2024 first-round picks to the Celtics in exchange for Smart, and the Grizzlies will also acquire Tyus Jones from Washington.

The Celtics will send this year’s 35th pick as well as Danilo Gallinari and Mike Muscala to the Wizards as a part of the three-team agreement.

Originally, the Celtics, Clippers and were “closing in” on a trade that would send Kristaps Porzingis to Boston, Malcolm Brogdon to Los Angeles and Marcus Morris to Washington, The Athletic reported Wednesday.

Concerns regarding Brogdon’s injury history were cited as the main reason behind the first deal’s collapse, as the Clippers removed themselves from the deal following a change of heart.

When the new deal is completed, the Celtics will have gained get a player to shore up their frontcourt as they’ve dealt with injuries (Robert Williams) and age (Al Horford) at the big man spot over the last couple of seasons. Porzingis, who’ll turn 28 before the start of the new season, arguably had the best season of his eight-year career last season with the Wizards. He scored a career-high 23.2 points per game, shooting 49.8 percent from the field and 38.5 percent from deep, adding 8.4 rebounds per game.

As for the Wizards, they traded longtime franchise star Bradley Beal to the Phoenix Suns, signaling the start of a rebuild. The Wizards didn’t receive much in return, reportedly getting back 38-year-old Chris Paul, Landry Shamet, future second-round picks and pick swaps as part of the deal. Washington is reportedly seeking to trade Paul.

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