The Boston Celtics are trading Kristaps Porziņģis to the Atlanta Hawks as part of a three-team trade with the Brooklyn Nets, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania. Atlanta will receive Porziņģis and a second, while the Celtics are getting back forward Georges Niang and a second-round pick.
The Nets, who helped facilitate the deal, will receive forward Terance Mann and the No. 22 overall pick in the NBA Draft, which begins Wednesday night. Brooklyn now owns five first-round picks — Nos. 8, 19, 22, 26 and 27. The Nets also have the 37th pick in the second round.
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Sam Quinn
The move comes less than 24 hours after Boston traded Jrue Holiday to the Portland Trail Blazers for Anfernee Simons and two second-round picks. The move by the Celtics was part of their efforts to save money against the second apron, as Simons makes roughly $5 million less than Holiday and is on an expiring contract.
Porziņģis averaged 19.5 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists during the 2024-25 season with Boston. The Celtics traded for Porziņģis during the 2023 offseason, and he played a key role on Boston’s title team last summer.
What’s next for Boston?
Boston will likely be without star forward Jayson Tatum for most, if not all, of the 2025-26 season because of a torn Achilles, and the organization has a ton of money invested into their core. That led to players like Porziņģis and Holiday becoming trade candidates this offseason.
The next decision Boston will have to make in the coming days and weeks is what’s next. Charania reported on Tuesday that teams are showing ‘significant interest’ in star guard Jaylen Brown, who signed a five-year, $304 million supermax extension with the Celtics in July 2023.
“There are multiple teams that have significant interest in Jaylen Brown,” Charania said on the Stephen A. Smith Show. “The contract is steep, I understand that… but, it’s an arms race.”
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Sam Quinn
Another name that has come up as a potential trade target on the market due to his age, contract, and versatility is Derrick White, who signed a four-year, $125.9 million contract extension last summer. Boston holds the No. 28 overall pick in the draft, which can be for a win-now player.
How does Porziņģis fit in Atlanta?
On the surface, Porziņģis’ fit in Atlanta is fascinating. Hawks big man Onyeka Okongwu, the No. 6 pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, was inserted into the starting lineup midseason in place of Clint Capela and started 40 games. Capela will be an unrestricted free agent this summer, and the trade for Porziņģis on the surface makes it unlikely he returns to Atlanta.
Will Atlanta start Porziņģis and Okongwu together? Maybe. But that starting lineup — depending on how the rest of the offseason shakes out — would likely be Trae Young, Dyson Daniels, Jalen Johnson, Porziņģis and Okongwu if the Hawks play two bigs. Zaccharie Risacher, the No. 1 pick from the 2024 draft, would also be in consideration to start.
Porziņģis is more of a floor-spacing big man, while Okongwu hasn’t been much of a threat from outside. Porziņģis, who shot 41.2% from the 3-point line on 6.0 attempts per game last season, should help a Hawks team that finished 19th (35.7%) in team 3-point percentage.
Atlanta didn’t give up a ton of premium assets in this deal and the reason for that is partly because of Porziņģis’ contract. The Hawks fired general manager Landry Fields earlier this offseason and hired Onsi Saleh as his replacement. Atlanta still holds the No. 13 pick in the draft, which was acquired in a deal with the Sacramento Kings back in 2022.
What is Brooklyn cooking?
The Nets now hold five first-round picks in Wednesday’s draft. That is not a typo. What Brooklyn will do with those picks remains to be seen, but it seems logical that the organization could consolidate some picks to move up. The Nets hold the No. 8 pick and are positioned to take whoever falls into their lap.
If the Nets want to be aggressive, one possibility would be moving up to land Rutgers star forward Ace Bailey, who some consider the most polarizing player in the class. Earlier this draft cycle, Bailey was projected to go No. 3 overall behind Duke’s Cooper Flagg and Rutgers teammate Dylan Harper. However, after canceling a pre-draft workout with the 76ers earlier this month, it’s unclear whether or not Philadelphia would select him.
The Nets are one of the only teams with real cap space this summer. Brooklyn has the luxury of jumping in as a facilitator to a larger deal and picking up an additional asset — in this case, the No. 22 pick — along the way.
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