4 players who may be playing final season with Boston Celtics in 2023-24

Malcolm Brogdon

Malcolm Brogdon was nearly traded by the Boston Celtics front office, and that has driven head coach Joe Mazzulla to have to do some damage control between the franchise and the reigning Sixth Man of the Year.

“There is a healing process, there is a listening process and to see where we are at and where we have to get to,” Mazzulla told reporters on July 26 (h/t Bobby Manning). “We’ve had some conversations as an organization but at the same time, we understand that’s the situation that it was and as the healing process goes on, we will move forward as well as you can.”

Having to heal a relationship that has only been one year long and was beneficial for both parties until one of them made it clear the other is expendable doesn’t sound like the makings of a long-term relationship.

If Brogdon feels slighted by a shooting guard, Derrick White, taking over the starting job even with Smart traded, it feels like this partnership could be done before the 2024 trade deadline.