A comprehensive breakdown of the recently rumored Boston Celtics trade targets
By Mark Nilon
Derrick Favors
Derrick Favors is a very interesting name to appear in trade rumors because his profile is one that very much fits the criteria of a player that would be dealt. The New Orleans Pelicans have a losing record, little hope of actually making a playoff push and have exciting young talent up and down the roster.
Favors is having far from his best year in 2019-20, missing time due to injuries and failing to stand out in a crowded Pelicans rotation during the time he has been out on the floor. His 8.7 points and 6.7 rebounds in 23 minutes don’t look impressive, but a deeper dive into his stats show that he is actually playing admirably on a team going nowhere this season.
With Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram and eventually Zion Williamson all needing usage, and J.J. Redick still needing the necessary shots to get his fill on the perimeter, Favors is serving a role not dissimilar to a modern day JaVale McGee or DeAndre Jordan. His usage percentage is as low as it has ever been at just 15%.
That said, he is finishing at the rim at a 58% clip. That kind of efficiency from a big who can hit the mid-range out to 15 feet could definitely be useful for a Boston Celtics team that does plenty of damage from the mid-range themselves.
The issue with Favors is the issue with most other high-salaried targets: is he worth trading away your two best big-men in Enes Kanter and Daniel Theis, as well as depth at the guard and wing spots?
Probably not.