Suddenly There Is More Smoke Surrounding A Potential Marcus Smart Trade

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Buckle up folks. With the trade deadline coming fast and furious on Thursday, you know what that means. We are going to see the Celts mentioned pretty much every single day until the deadline passes. Yesterday, Kevin O'Connor had this little nugget

Boston’s pursuit of Collins also involves another key Hawks rotation player, according to league sources: Bogdan Bogdanovic, whom the Celtics had some trade discussions about while he was in Sacramento. If the Hawks were to acquire Ball, maybe moving Bogdanovic would make some sense. Both Collins, 23, and Bogdanovic, 28, fit the timeline of All-Stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, who are 23 and 24, yet are good enough to compete now.

and then just this morning Shams put more gas on that fire

The Hawks have expressed interest in Celtics guard Marcus Smart, sources said. Smart has played in six games since returning from a calf strain, and Celtics players understood his loss in the lineup during the month-and-a-half he sat out.

Here's the most important thing for Celtics fans to understand. If the plan is to bring in real players, you are going to have to give up something real. Just because Collins makes like $4M does not mean you're getting him for some first round picks and someone like Romeo. The Hawks don't have to do dick with Collins. He's a RFA. They've won 8 in a row. They have all the leverage. That means if you want to bring in a player like Collins or Aaron Gordon, it'll probably cost you someone like Smart.

So let's talk about this for a second. We can begin with the idea of Collins AND Bogdanovic as a package. Together, they make $22M. Obviously it would be then impossible to do a 2 for 1 swap since Smart only makes $12.9M. So, does that mean we could see a Smart/Thompson package? That money works theoretically. Throw in some first round picks and maybe the Hawks bite.

The question then becomes, should the Celts even do that? Let's look at it from both angles. If you are someone who is for this trade, here is the appeal. John Collins is a young stretch 4 who theoretically fits your system and someone I would consider a much better Daniel Theis offensively. Defensively there are issues, but there's no denying his production. It's legit. As a RFA, the Celts would have the ability to match any offer he gets this offseason, which all signs point to being max money. Ownership would have to be down to pay the tax and consider Collins worth it. I'm not really worried about that, ownership has been public in being willing to pay whatever.

With Bogdanovic. while he accepted that offer sheet in ATL to start, things haven't been great. He's been hurt and is having a down year. Just 9.5 points on 38/33%. At the same time, maybe that's just a situation thing. He does have experience coming off the bench and being the main scoring option in that role, he just did it with the Kings, and there's no denying there is a need for another legit 6'6 wing on this roster. Bogdanovic fills that need in theory. 

Then there's the other side of the coin. Trading Marcus Smart would be a huge organizational shift. He's the heart and soul of this team and every player on the roster talks about that. But we also have to tell the truth. Smart isn't having that great of a season either. His defense has regressed, and his offense has taken a step back as well. Then there's the contract part of this whole thing. Smart only has 1 more guaranteed year on his deal before he becomes a UFA. If you were to think about trading him, his value probably wouldn't be any higher than it is right now. The Celts basically need to decide what they want to do when it comes to his future. If they do not plan on re-signing him he has to be traded. If they feel like he will leave as a UFA after next season, they have to trade him. You cannot keep letting these assets leave for nothing.

Your issue then becomes who will defend opposing guards? Even if you think Smart has regressed on that end, he's still a versatile 6'4 defender who more often than not shows up on that end. You also lose your best playmaker and don't really replace him. I'm sorry, but Payton Pritchard is not the answer there at this moment in time. You have to be 1000000% sure that both Jays are OK with a move like this. You're basically gutting the heart and soul of your roster with no guarantee that it'll ultimately fix things.

So as you can see, it's an interesting situation. If the Celts do this trade, they are bringing in two players who theoretically can help as long as they have the green light from ownership to max John Collins. But is that even a good idea? Are you a contender with that roster? Because make no mistake, if you make that move, that's your team. You're out of assets and cap space to basically do anything else. The question then becomes, if you're willing to trade Smart, do you hold off until the summer when maybe you could package him in a bigger trade for a better player? 

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I can see both sides to this idea. I don't know how much it helps you in the immediate, but if there is a chance Smart is not back on this roster after next season, you, unfortunately, have to get ahead of that. If you want to bring in good players, you have to trade your good players. That's just the reality.