According to Shams Charania of ESPN, the Boston Celtics just traded the No. 32 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft to the Orlando Magic, which they used to select French forward Noah Penda, in exchange for four second-round picks. They added the No. 46 and 57 picks in this year’s draft, as well as a 2026 second-round pick and a 2027 second-round pick.
Orlando moved up aggressively to select Penda, who is one of the best wing defenders in this year’s class and an elite playmaker with a big body. Meanwhile, the Celtics just added a bunch of picks to their draft cabinet, giving them even more flexibility moving forward.
And that’s the key.
The Celtics just fleeced the Magic with this trade
Obviously, if the Magic were as enamored as they clearly were with Penda, then they’ll be fine with this deal. And if he turns into a quality rotation piece for them, they won’t blink twice at the price they paid.
But as things stand, the Celtics just traded one second-round pick for four. No matter what way you spin it, that’s a massive win for Boston. Adding that many picks gives them a ton of options moving forward, and it was simply too good of a deal to pass up.
There were some guys available who could have been solid fits for Boston, such as Ryan Kalkbrenner and Maxime Raynaud, but when a team is getting the price the Magic were willing to pay, they’ll almost never say no.
Trade gives Celtics flexibility
After the first round, in which the Celtics drafted Hugo Gonzalez with the No. 28 pick, Brad Stevens noted that the organization wanted to regain flexibility this summer, in regard to finances and other aspects of the team.
“I don't think we need to go into any specifics,” Stevens said when asked about planning for the second apron. “I think the biggest thing is that there clearly is a need to prioritize regaining our flexibility and maximizing, from an asset standpoint, what we can. As far as whatever moves that those are a part of, they're all separate, and hard, and things that you're just going to have to do your best to make sure you put yourself in the right positions. We knew this was coming, right? This isn't a huge surprise. We have to make sure we prioritize that flexibility.
“Obviously, we’ve got other things that we’ve got to prioritize. We’ve got to prioritize JT’s health and make sure that he comes back fully strong. JB had a surgery, although his timeline to be back will be much quicker, obviously, and ready at the start of the season. The biggest thing for us is just making sure that we balance that, maximizing what we can with regard to what we bring back so we can continue to build and grow.”
Adding four second-round picks gives them a ton of ways to sweeten the pot in deals and throw darts at the dart board regarding prospects. This was an absolute haul for Boston.