Proposal swaps Boston Celtics’ Sixth Man of the Year for 2 two-way veterans

The Boston Celtics’ reigning NBA Sixth Man of the Year, Malcolm Brogdon, has a two-year, $45 million extension kicking in during the 2023-24 season — but Inside The Celtics’ Bobby Krivitsky wants to forgo paying it and instead believes the team could do well to trade him for depth. That’d come in the form of Nets forward Dorian Finney-Smith and Brooklyn guard Patty Mills, with the Cs also opting into Mike Muscala’s player option and packaging him in the deal.

“While there’s an argument for keeping him and that his shooting makes him an effective crunch-time complement to Jayson Tatum and Brown, the Celtics could trade him for someone who’s a better fit,” Krivitsky prefaced before saying, “If they go that route, Dorian Finney-Smith meets that description. While Boston and Brooklyn couldn’t execute a solo swap, the former could exercise Mike Muscala’s $3.5 million club option, then trade him when he’s eligible, with Patty Mills, on an expiring $6.8 million contract, joining the Celtics.”

Finney-Smith’s efficiency fell off a cliff after being shipped from the Mavericks to the Nets in the Kyrie Irving trade, but he had been a 40% 3-point shooter the previous seasons in 2021-22 and 2020-21 in Dallas. Brooklyn was an outfit with an ill-fitting roster after the Irving and Kevin Durant trade, ending up with more hybrid forwards than any coach would know what to do with. In hindsight, it’s a minor miracle Jacque Vaughn was able to get the Nets to finish in the No. 6 seed ahead of Miami. As for Mills, his own role was minimal following the 2023 trade deadline. It’s unlikely the Aussie will stick in Brooklyn this offseason, with the team no longer a win-now contender in need of such a bench hand.

The Boston Celtics are better off trading Payton Pritchard than Malcolm Brogdon

Dealing away Brogdon might mean the Boston Celtics trading away multiple members of its backcourt during the offseason. Payton Pritchard is known to be seeking a new role and has reiterated his trade request to the C’s front office, so dealing Brogdon away would more work to the team’s offseason itinerary.

Unless Yam Madar is already ready for a big role off the pine, Brogdon being traded is not in the best interest of a franchise that was five games away from a championship this past postseason.