Rockets eyeing Marcus Smart

The idea that the Rockets could trade Wednesday’s No. 3 overall pick to Memphis for No. 9 and Marcus Smart — so the Grizzlies can draft Donovan Clingan — is being mentioned with increasing regularity by various league insiders. -via marcstein.substack.com / June 24, 2024

But as was widely reported at the time, the Celtics originally agreed to a deal that would have sent Malcolm Brogdon to the Clippers, instead of Smart to the Grizzlies. Concerns about Brogdon’s health caused the Clippers to back out, forcing Boston to pivot to a Smart-based deal. At the time, many Celtics fans were crushed. Smart was a lifelong Celtic and a fan favorite. It hurt that the team dealt him instead of Brogdon, especially for a player as injury prone as Porzingis. But there’s a detail missing from that initial saga: Sources from around the league say that once that KP for Brogdon deal was complete, Smart still would have been sent to the Grizzlies for Tyus Jones and two firsts. -via The Ringer / June 24, 2024

One year ago, the Celtics entered the offseason knowing that they needed to make changes after falling short in the playoffs for the ninth straight year. League sources say that Boston’s top priority was acquiring Kristaps Porzingis, who had three strong performances against the Celtics during his lone season with the Wizards and scored 32 points on just 21 shots and had 13 rebounds and six assists in their third matchup. Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens worked quickly to pursue Porzingis and ended up landing him and two first-round picks for Marcus Smart and one second in a three-way deal with the Grizzlies and Wizards. -via The Ringer / June 24, 2024