Boston Celtics: 3 offseason Portland Trail Blazers deals

Why the Boston Celtics do it

Tristan Thompson has not panned out for the Cs in the way Danny Ainge had likely hoped before he invested $18 million in the career-long Cleveland Cavalier. Robert Williams is taking over the starting center position gracefully and should end up with it when the playoffs roll around. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem as though Thompson is capable of being the starting pivot on an NBA Championship team anymore.

Jusuf Nurkic is a beast on the boards who helped fuel a late-season push from Portland to land in the postseason. He proved to be too formidable for Memphis’ centers in the play-in game, and provided an early scare to the eventual champion Los Angeles Lakers famed frontcourt as well.

While giving up two picks to do so hurts, Nurkic is a surefire upgrade and worthy rotation piece…assuming he stays healthy.

Why the Portland Trailblazers do it

Perhaps Thompson is just not a match for the Boston Celtics frontcourt. While he wasn’t overly impressive in his final season in “The Land”, Andre Drummond’s sudden arrival likely had a hand in that.

For Portland, acquiring several future picks is a good way to brace for the day Lillard forces his hand and finds a deal elsewhere. It happens to everyone eventually when a championship isn’t won, and there are plenty of other stars in the league who could use a superstar running mate of his caliber to get over the hump.