After being placed by the Boston Celtics in this offseason’s trade market, even almost taking an exit upon the failed Kristaps Porzingis deal, Malcolm Brogdon may not see himself back to the NBA trade mill – at least for now.
A source told Steve Bulpett of Heavy.com that the Celtics are “shutting down” any trade inquiries that feature the veteran.
“We asked about him and we were told he’s a valued member of their team,” the source told Bulpett. “They said he’s a valued member of their team, and that’s where it ended. I don’t know if that changes down the line, but we didn’t get anywhere. And I’m pretty sure we aren’t the only team that got that response.”
Brogdon was almost dealt to the Los Angeles Clippers in a multi-team trade earlier this offseason which would allow the C’s to snag Porzingis, but the framework collapsed upon L.A.’s injury concern to the two-guard.
Boston, desperate to acquire the Latvian star, ultimately pulled the trigger and instead gave up fan-favorite and long-time Celtic Marcus Smart in a new three-team deal.
Brogdon was solid in his first year for the Celtics by averaging 14.9 points, 4.2 boards and 3.7 assists in 67 games of play which allowed him to win the 2022-23 Sixth Man of the Year honors. But his unfortunate elbow injury late in the postseason hurt Boston’s contention.
“They didn’t want to move him in the first place,” another source said to Bulpett. “They really like Malcolm. But they had to balance out their roster. They didn’t want to go into another season having to rely so heavily on (Robert) Williams and (Al) Horford. They had a bit of a logjam in the backcourt, and they really needed some insurance up front.”
