Boston Celtics: 2 Juan Hernangomez trades for OKC’s Derrick Favors

Hey, maybe Boston Celtics President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens acquired Juan Hernangomez from the Memphis Grizzlies for depth purposes.

It sure didn’t seem that way out of the gates, though. There was once legitimate momentum for ‘Juancho’ to be a starter.

Now that seems like ancient history at this point after watching the Spaniard fall behind other members of the front court and spiral out of the rotation altogether outside of a few garbage minutes against the Toronto Raptors in a loss and legitimate but uninspiring minutes last night against the Charlotte Hornets.

Granted, his six points scored in eight minutes doesn’t seem so damning of an average, but paying $7 million for a reserve isn’t a goal for any franchise, even with NBA salaries historically soaring.

Hernangomez received the start for the preseason’s opening contest against the Orlando Magic but promptly never started again after that. It’s questionable whether or not he’ll get back there barring injuries.

So, perhaps Stevens should figure out a way to ship him off and return a player that can contribute in the front court.

The Houdini explored the San Antonio Spurs as an option this past Monday, and now looks to Texas’ neighbor Oklahoma to figure out a trade fit with the Thunder.

After getting throttled by the Houston Rockets, it’s clear that OKC is still a ways away from winning anything of substance in 2021-22. They have a young core and a GM in Sam Presti that has been hellbent on acquiring assets to further plot the team’s next serious title threat a la the Kevin Durant-Russell Westbrook teams.

These deals won’t get them any top-shelf assets, but it feeds their needs and gets the Cs back a player that could help them in the interim: Derrick Favors.