Should The Celtics Go All In For Zion Williamson?
I hope Brad Stevens understands that he’s not done making moves. The loss of Marcus Smart is crushing for the Celtics despite the fact that Kristaps Porzingis is a really good fit for this team. Even after the Porzingis trade, the Celtics have more work to do because right now this team isn’t good enough to raise Banner 18 without Smart. Is Zion Williamson actually available? If the answer is yes, this is absolutely one of those moves Boston should go all in for.
I just don’t see how you can feel confident about the Celtics being a championship team until they get more out of the Malcolm Brogdon and Al Horford spots on the cap sheet. Both are aging in dog years and can’t be counted on when it counts. Horford’s shot is way too inconsistent and Brogdon is damaged goods. If he weren’t, he would have been in the first iteration of the trade and Smart would still be a Celtics.
God… I really hate Brogdon. The mistake that keeps on compiling cost this team Smart and that should be viewed as inexcusable. On paper, the trade for Smart isn’t terrible but we’re also talking about a team that wasn’t tough enough and has now given away its heartbeat. You’re going to have to make another splash to overcome that.
The Brogdon thing was a mistake. You’re going to have to bite the bullet on that one way or another. Horford is running on literal fumes. Is there a way you can package one or both for a major upgrade? That’s the only way you’re really in the championship mix because giving up Smart feels like a lateral move at best.
Is Zion actually available? That’s what I really want to know. Jackson did a video on it but I just want this on record. If Zion can be had I’m not losing the bidding war. By the way, (I know different sport) the last time I said this it was for Matthew Tkachuk and was proven very right. Given how crazy the Zion narrative has become with the OnlyFans model, it at least feels possible the former Duke product is moved.
This is the type of guy you go all in for because these types of opportunities don’t come around very often. What Zion needs is to be part of a real winner. To have something to play for. New Orleans is a place people go to die. Chris Paul, Anthony Davis, and now Zion have all underachieved in New Orleans. Some of Zion’s struggles are the environment and I just don’t know how people can look past that.
It’s a very different thing to be in Boston and Kevin Garnett or Paul Pierce knocks on your door. Getting Zion out of Madri Gras land and up north to a place with less partying feels optimal too. I refuse to believe there isn’t a pathway to getting this guy in shape and motivated. Hell, I’ll be his personal trainer if that’s what needs to happen free of charge.
How do we make this happen? If Celtics include 5 first rounders do the Pelicans bite? pic.twitter.com/U5MjilAf5X
— Trey Daubert (@treydaubert) June 22, 2023
A starting five of Derrick White, Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, Kristaps Porzingis, and Zion becomes SCARY! They would still have Rob Williams as a backup big and Payton Pritchard as a backup point. You need maybe one or two bench guys and you feel really good about this team winning a title. What the Clippers did with Paul George giving up all those picks is exactly what Boston should do with Zion if that opportunity presents itself. That goes without saying that the Zion and Porzingis pairing is perfect. One guy is tall and can shoot but frail. The other is a bowling ball of hell that doesn’t stretch the floor. To plug that in with the Jays? That’s game over.
Again, who knows if Zion is actually on the table? I wouldn’t deal him if I were New Orleans but plenty of smart people that cover the NBA seem more than willing to part with him for the right price. If this is the opportunity to push the chips in the center as the Suns did, Boston needs to take it and not think twice.
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