Danny Ainge is no stranger to making franchise-altering trades. After previously wheeling and dealing in favor of the Boston Celtics, he just pulled off two more in the span of two months for the Utah Jazz.
The Jazz executive moved franchise cornerstones Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert in trades netting the team a boatload of draft picks that commits them to a full-scale rebuild. Celtics fan favorite Brian Scalabrine made sure to heap praise towards his former boss for his masterful maneuvering in a recent appearance on SiriusXM NBA Radio:
“I thought it was a very good trade for Cleveland to get him and I thought it was an unbelievable trade for Danny Ainge and what he got. Collin Sexton can score, Markkanen is a good player and you basically get 3 lottery picks, Collin Sexton at a decent number, Markkanen at a decent number. At the end of the day if Danny wanted to move both of those guys, he could for more first-round picks.”
. @Scalabrine is a big fan of Thursday’s trade for both the Cavs and the Jazz #LetEmKnow #TakeNote pic.twitter.com/Y0I6yyxMG3
— SiriusXM NBA Radio (@SiriusXMNBA) September 2, 2022
The Jazz now have a treasure trove of NBA first-round picks that would rival the Thunder GM Sam Presti's haul in OKC. It also makes Utah a surefire bottom-feeder for an 2023 draft with generational talent at the top.
Celtics fans aren't surprised. Danny Ainge made at minimum four monumental trades in Boston that shaped their team's success for the past two decades. There were the Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen trades that got them their 2008 NBA title. There was the trade that sent KG and Paul Pierce packing for a draft pick special that led to their current core of stars. Then there was the Markelle Fultz-for-Jayson Tatum swap that will forever go down as one of the best in Celtics history.
He's bringing that same energy to Utah and both fans and former Celtics Brian Scalabrine are all for it.
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