If the Boston Celtics would have been able to complete their first iteration of their trade for Kristaps Porzingis, they may not have had enough pieces to also trade for Jrue Holiday in September, reports Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer.
The Celtics were set to trade Malcolm Brogdon to the Los Angeles Clippers, while the Washington Wizards would have acquired Marcus Morris and the No. 30 pick in the draft. Boston also was sending Danilo Gallinari to Washington to make the contracts work. The Clippers backed out of the trade after flagging an issue with Brogdon medically.
If the trade with the Clippers would have been agreed upon, Boston was going to trade Marcus Smart to the Memphis Grizzlies for Tyus Jones and two first round picks. The Celtics instead pivoted to combine their two separate transactions with the Grizzlies and Wizards into one deal, which sent Jones to Washington, and allowed Boston to keep Brogdon.
The Celtics ultimately used Brogdon in their trade for Holiday in September.