The first Woj bomb to drop. 

According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Boston Celtics have agreed to trade Kemba Walker and their 2021 1st round pick to the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for Al Hoford, Moses Brown, and a future 2nd round pick. 

Al Horford will be returning to Boston after spending a year with the Philadelphia 76ers and last year with the Oklahoma City Thunder. Horford, now 34, is not the player he once was, but can still make an impact and be a veteran presence to Boston’s extremely young roster.

The second piece is Moses Brown, a 7’2” Center who was a rookie last year. Some fans may remember Brown torching the Celtics with a 21 point, 23 rebound game back in March. He will be an impactful backup to Rob Williams and will provide Boston with quality minutes.

With the trade as a whole, here are some of my immediate reaction thoughts:

1.) Boston did this deal to save money. 

Kemba Walker is owed $34.3 million for the 2021-22 season and the 2022-23 season. Kemba signed this large deal with the Celtics to replace Kyrie Irving, but things didn’t pan out as one would hope. Walker was plagued with injuries for the 2 years he wore the Celtics green, and has been on a slow decline since. Some were saying his contract may be the worst in the entire league. 

In this deal, Boston brings back Al Horford, who is owed $27.5 million between next season and the 2022-23 season, but has an opt out after next year. Also, this saves Boston $7.9 million under the luxury tax for next year, which can make an Evan Fournier-Celtics reunion easier to make. Moses Brown makes $1.2 million, which could actually turn out to be great for Boston based on his upside while making such small money. 

2.) Tristan Thompson is likely the next guy out. 

After adding Horford back into the mix and also adding Moses Brown, Boston suddenly has a crowded frontcourt. Their depth chart with big men now includes: Rob Williams, Al Horford, Tristan Thompson, & Moses Brown. I don’t see the Celtics keeping Thompson, mainly at the fact that his minutes takes away from both Rob Williams and Moses Brown’s development. At also being 30, we’ve seen his ceiling and isn’t going to get any better. 

3.) The Celtics now need a point guard. 

With Kemba out, The C’s options at point guard are now Marcus Smart, Payton Pritchard, and Carsen Edwards, with Tremont Waters now a free agent.

Boston could always start Marcus Smart, but there is a risk there. He’s not a scorer (as much as he thinks he is), a streaky shooter, and not quite the playmaker that can really complement Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum at this point in his career. He’s my pick if I had to choose between the 3, but the C’s could find better options at their starting point. There is also Payton Pritchard, but his ceiling is limited and I see him much more as a backup. And lastly, there is Carsen Edwards, who is nothing more than a 3rd stringer.

To find a starting point guard, our best best is through a trade. Free agency’s current projection doesn’t show the best class of point guards after Chris Paul & Mike Conley, who will be too expensive to sign. There is Dennis Schroder and Lonzo Ball, but they both potentially could also be too expensive. If we take the free agent route, expect names like Reggie Jackson, Elfrid Payton, and Goran Dragic to be mentioned as possible short term replacements. Other than that, a trade is what’s best. You can flip Tristan Thompson and Romeo Langford and hope to find a taker.

Overall, this was a smart trade for the Celtics. It may not be what fans wanted, but if we are to bring a third star along to pair with Jaylen and Jayson, this is the right way to start.