Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics shake-up is already well underway. They moved head coach Brad Stevens into the front office, taking over for Danny Ainge, who stepped down from his position. Ime Udoka was hired to take over as head coach, and he will assuredly have a much different roster to use than Stevens ended the 2020-21 season with.
Starting point guard Kemba Walker has already been traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder, with Al Horford being brought back to Beantown. While CJ McCollum isn’t a traditional point guard, he makes for a logical fit in the Celtics’ backcourt.
The Celtics are one team that Jason Quick has heard would be interested in a player like McCollum, and it is easy to see why. McCollum would bring the scoring punch and shot creation the team lost when Walker was traded. That third scoring option is key to making the offense work and to alleviate pressure off of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
The Celtics also have a player in Marcus Smart that would be a good centerpiece for the Blazers’ return package, as his defense would complement Damian Lillard’s scoring prowess well.
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A trio of McCollum, Tatum and Brown would give the Celtics plenty of firepower to keep up with the other teams in the upper echelon of the Eastern Conference and get back to their status as contenders.
