NBA trade season is officially in full effect as the Boston Celtics, Washington Wizards, and Memphis Grizzlies pulled off a major three-team trade on the eve of the 2023 NBA Draft. The deal involved five players and three picks, but the headline is that Kristaps Porzingis is heading to Boston while Marcus Smart is going to Memphis. Here are the winners and losers from this wild Celtics-Wizards-Grizzlies trade.

The Celtics-Wizards-Grizzlies trade

This massive three-team trade went down in the early morning hours of June 22, less than 20 hours before the 2023 NBA Draft. A similar deal almost happened earlier in the day that would have sent Porzingis to the Celtics and Malcolm Brogdon to the Los Angeles Clippers. However, the Clippers reportedly backed out due to Brogdon’s medical history.

Hours later, Celtics general manager Brad Stevens revived the deal with the Grizzlies stepping in for the Clippers.

In the end, the full trade looks like this:

Celtics get:
F/C Kristaps Porzingis
2023 first-round pick (No. 25)
2024 first-round pick (via Golden State; top-four protected)

Wizards get:
G Tyus Jones
F Danilo Gallinari
C Mike Muscala
2023 second-round pick (No. 35)

Grizzlies get:
G Marcus Smart

In the end, all three teams did pretty well here. The Celtics shook up their team in an interesting way and got two first-round picks out of the deal, the Grizzlies got their Ja Morant (at least temporary) replacement, and the Wizards got worse, which is the plan.

There were some individual winners and losers of this deal, though, so let’s talk about them.

WINNER: Kristaps Porzingis

Kristaps Porzingis is now officially in the best situation of his career, and he earned it. The eight-year NBA veteran averaged the most points per game (23.2) of his career, and the second-best assists (2.7) and 3-point percentage (38.5%).

He also stayed healthy, playing 65 games in 2022-23. That’s his best total since his second year in the NBA and 14 more games than he played in the previous two seasons combined.

Now he gets to play with Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Robert Williams. These players will take care of the defense, the rebounding, and heavy lifting on offense, and Porzingis can just work his inside/outside offensive game which, when on, is one of the most distinctive in the NBA.

LOSER: Ja Morant

Grizzlies star Ja Morant just keeps on losing. First, it was with a 25-game suspension to start his 2023-24 season, and now it’s because of who they brought in to replace him.

Trading for Marcus Smart could mean a couple of things for Morant.

Smart is a veteran, playoff-tested point guard who is capable of starting on any type of team. So, this deal could mean the team is planning on trading Morant as soon as draft night. It could also mean that Smart gets a 25-game audition, and then Morant gets traded next season.

What seems least likely is that Morant and Smart someday play together. That means instead of using assets to help Ja win, they had to use this year’s first-round pick to get a stop-gap player. Either way, it’s not great for the Grizzlies superstar.

WINNER: Jaylen Brown

Jaylen Brown is in line for a mega contract extension that kicks in next season, which will mean in two years, the Celtics will be paying him and Jayson Tatum around $100 million per season.

Marcus Smart has three years and over $60 million left on his current deal. By getting rid of him and bringing in Kristaps Porzingis, who is an expiring contract, the team is signaling that it is at least going to give Brown and Tatum on max deals a run.

Plus, while Smart was the emotional leader on the Celtics, he also seemed to think he was the best player on the team at times. Now, the leadership and the crown as the top guys officially go to Brown and Tatum, and the Celtics hope they flourish without Smart nipping at their heels.

LOSER: Chris Paul

Poor Chris Paul. Just a few days ago, he was on a championship contender with Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and Deandre Ayton. Now, he’s on a team that is trying to get as bad as they can as fast as they can.

The good news is he likely won’t be on the Wizards for long.

WINNER/LOSER: Wizards/Wizards fans

The Wizards are executing a smart strategy right now. They are acting as an NBA clearing house for bad, short contracts, and getting draft picks in return. It will ultimately help reset the franchise and hopefully come back stronger than ever in a few years.

That said, Wizards fans can’t be happy with the return the team has gotten for Bradley Beal and Kristaps Porzingis. The total haul for the team’s two biggest stars is Chris Paul, Landry Shamet, Tyus Jones, Danilo Gallinari, Mike Muscala, and a bunch of second-round picks with a few pick swaps.

The team couldn’t get (even a late) first-round pick in either of these deals? That’s weak.