The Celtics faced a time crunch when it came to acquiring Kristaps Porzingis in a deal with the Wizards last week. The big man had to settle on a $36 million player option with the Wizards by midnight June 22 in order for Boston to have a way to win him. Ultimately, an indirect looming threat from a familiar face helped the team seal a deal with Washington.
According to a report by NBA insider Marc Stein, the Utah Jazz were “ready” to make Porzingis a strong offer should the 6-foot-1 man decide to turn down his player option with Washington and become an unrestricted free agent.
If Porzingis had gone down this route, the Celtics would have had no chance of acquiring the former All-Star (a sign-and-trade would not have been viable under the apron/hardcap). However, it was also apparent that the Wizards were concerned about the possibility of losing Porzingis in free agency with no compensation, according to Stein. That possibility kept the team motivated to strike a deal with Boston, even after an initial three-team construct with the LA Clippers fell apart on Wednesday.
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After the Clippers pulled out of the deal Wednesday over concerns about Malcolm Brogdon’s health, the Celtics finally found a new third team in the Grizzlies to make the deal work. Boston sent Marcus Smart to the Grizzlies, Memphis sent Tyus Jones along with draft picks to Boston in Washington, while the Wizards also received the C’s 35th overall pick for taking on the contracts of Danilo Gallinari and Mike Muscala.
It’s debatable how exactly Porzingis would have fit into the Jazz forecourt alongside the two promising greats Walker Kessler and Lauri Markkanen, but Danny Ainge has shown he’s not shy about buying cheap free agents or swapping assets in a rebuild. During the Celtics’ rebuild over the past decade, he’s been able to pick up Evan Turner and Isaiah Thomas, among others, at bargain prices, leading to promising early results on the pitch. The Jazz have a potential $47 million upside this summer, so they presented a legitimate threat to make a big offer for Porzingis if he came on the market.
Instead, their looming presence as a threat may have helped the Celtics win the big man who reportedly had Boston as his preferred destination this offseason.