Boston Celtics: 2 core-splitting offseason deals Cs should pursue

As all in as it gets

Like the last trade, the Boston Celtics would bring in a whole new core at the expense of the very foundation they are currently built on. Starting point guard Kemba Walker and super sixth-man and fill-in starter Marcus Smart would be supplemented by four first-round picks in a deal that would bring in Damian Lillard and Jusuf Nurkic.

Why the Boston Celtics do it

As great as a fit as Kemba Walker has been with the Celtics–and his willingness to take a backseat certainly facilitated the rise of Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum this past season–he was not able to take over games in the postseason, instead looking worse for wear.

The rumors that he wasn’t healthy but help and hurt his case for why Boston should keep him long-term. On one hand, he didn’t contribute enough because he might have been slowed down considerably from his knee woes. On the other, what if he never gets right for the duration of his three-year contract?

Flipping him now would be a prudent offseason move, and if Lillard ever became available, pursuing a deal to swap him with Walker would be the best use of sending outbound draft picks there is.

Why the Portland Trailblazers do it

Something pretty significant would have to happen to force Lillard to look elsewhere this offseason, but our pie-in-the-sky dream upgrade would be joining a team that is on the cusp much like himself. Unfortunately, Portland is not that place, and it may be a matter of time before they realize that.

Acquiring Marcus Smart on the wing would make the Blazers a dangerous two-way team, and getting out of the final years of Nurkic’s contract could prove beneficial if he can’t stay healthy.