It’s been a whirlwind of a trade deadline for the Boston Celtics–and the NBA as a whole–on the final day that general managers can trade in the 2020-21 season.
The Cs made their mark by acquiring Evan Fournier in exchange for several second-round picks from the Orlando Magic. Fournier, a 20-point-per-game scorer, figures to improve the bench but fails to qualify as much of a game-changing addition…at least through the lenses of the team competing with the top teams in the Eastern Conference.
At the very least, though, it helps field a more competitive team in the interim. Avoiding a situation where the team failed to make the postseason could be the best-case scenario for the development of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. Going from competing in the Eastern Conference finals to not even qualifying for the playoffs could have done irreparable damage to the growth of the team’s two stars.
What the Fournier trade didn’t do, however, was silence critics of the team for not pulling the trigger on any blockbusters using their collection of future draft picks.
The Ringer’s Paolo Uggetti snuck in a post-Fournier trade shot at Cs fans who were anticipating a more substantial move, such as an Aaron Gordon trade:
Please tell me just how close Boston was to getting Aaron Gordon. I’m gonna pretend to be surprised.
— Paolo Uggetti (@PaoloUggetti) March 25, 2021
Interestingly enough, Boston Celtics superfan Bill Simmons owns The Ringer, so Uggetti took a lighthearted shot at his own boss. And while Cs fans may not like the idea of an NBA writer mocking their team, it must be quite humorous seeing the Celtics fanbase get excited at the idea of adding a headliner to this team only to be let down by reality.
There’s a reason why they play the games, though. Perhaps the Fournier addition can have a greater impact than what fans are currently expecting.