How Andrew Bogut, Carmelo Anthony Could End Up In Boston
With Carmelo Anthony and Andrew Bogut two of the hottest names in trade rumors, there is a way both could end up on the Boston Celtics.
All of the trade talk surrounding the NBA right now rightfully centers around Carmelo Anthony and if the star will waive his no trade clause to join a new team. Despite talk that Anthony wants to remain in New York, the Knicks have already engaged a handful of teams according to The Vertical.
“Armed with a hope that Carmelo Anthony will eventually waive his no-trade clause, the New York Knicks have reached out to the Boston Celtics, Los Angeles Clippers and Cleveland Cavaliers to probe their interest in a trade, league sources told The Vertical.”
On the Andrew Bogut front, all is quiet for the moment. Bogut is on the last year of his deal in Dallas on a Mavericks team that is sitting with a 16-30 record on the season. The idea of unloading the 32-year-old anchor to a playoff team is becoming more and more likely.
With teams such as Portland and Boston needing a defensive presence in the middle, exploring a trade for Andrew Bogut could be entertaining. Even though some reports have Boston out of the running for Carmelo, I’m operating under the assumption that there is still a shot.
So is there a scenario where the Boston Celtics could land both Carmelo Anthony AND Andrew Bogut without giving up their lucrative Brooklyn draft picks?
I believe so and this is how.
BOSTON RECIEVES: Carmelo Anthony, Andrew Bogut, Justin Holiday
NEW YORK RECIEVES: Amir Johnson, Jae Crowder, Marcus Smart
DALLAS RECIEVES: Tyler Zeller, Terry Rozier
Boston: The Celtics get their star power in Carmelo Anthony. Anthony would replace Crowder on the wing and give Boston a second scoring threat to Isaiah Thomas. Without diving deep into the Anthony fit in Boston, he could push Boston into a contender with Cleveland.
Boston is already searching for another big to anchor down the middle and defend the paint, but giving up Johnson and Zeller in this deal would put an emphasis on getting a big back. Bogut could start with Horford or come off the bench to guard other bigs in the league.
This deal would allow Boston to keep Thomas, Horford, Bradley, Jaylen Brown and all of their picks to go with Anthony and Bogut in making a push at Cleveland.
New York: Getting Carmelo Anthony off the books would be the main thing, but replacing him with a younger Jae Crowder wouldn’t be the worst option. Phil Jackson has publicly praised Jae Crowder before and getting him back in the deal would be a priority.
Marcus Smart is the former 6th overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft and would be the long term replacement to Derrick Rose if the Knicks viewed him that way. Amir Johnson would be a cap matching deal that would expire this summer.
Not only would New York be getting two young pieces in Crowder and Smart, they would be clearing cap space for the next couple of summers.
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Dallas: Getting something back for Andrew Bogut before he potentially walks for nothing this summer would obviously be the main goal. With the hopes of the playoffs drifting after each loss, getting some young flyers would be good for a rebuilding Mavs team.
Tyler Zeller is 27 years old and is under contract this year for around $8 million dollars with next year being non-guaranteed. Zeller would play out this year and the Mavs would decide if he is worth keeping around for the future.
Terry Rozier is the former 16th overall pick out of Louisville in the 2015 NBA Draft and is just 22 years old. The youngster has shown some sparks off the bench in Boston where he averages around 18 minutes a night. He is a young point guard that Dallas could take a flyer on and see if he could develop into something.
This deal would obviously only happen if Carmelo Anthony waived his no trade clause to play in Boston, but it’s a deal that could benefit all teams involved. I am also well aware that this would be two separate deals, but used the term “deal” to lump it all together.
