Celtics Reportedly Trade Avery Bradley to Pistons

The Detroit Pistons acquired guard Avery Bradley from the Boston Celtics in exchange for forward Marcus Morris, the Pistons said on Friday.

The Miami Heat traded oft-injured forward Josh McRoberts to the Dallas Mavericks for center A.J. Hammons and a 2023 second-round draft pick.

Bradley's deal makes room for the salary-cap space the Celtics needed to sign forward Gordon Hayward, who is a free agent at the moment. He averaged 9.5 points in 278 regular-season games shot a career-best 51 percent last season.

"It's no secret that Avery had been one of my favorite players", Ainge said. He started 72 games previous year, averaging 13.9 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. The trade saves the Celtics about $3.8 million in salary commitments for the upcoming "17-18 season, thereby enabling the C's to sign Hayward and other players". If you want details on the trade and Avery Bradley's contract, then our Avery Bradley wiki is just for you. Morris should end up starting for Boston next to Al Horford, though the calculus could change if the team elects to keep Jae Crowder.

The trade leaves Marcus Smart as the longest tenured player on the Celtics roster.

Entering free agency, many theorised that Hayward would indeed go to the Celtics to pair up with his old college coach back in Butler - Brad Stevens - and move to the weaker Eastern Conference where he could push the C's over the three-time defending conference champions, the Cleveland Cavaliers. They would select Jayson Tatum with the third pick in the draft after trading down in a deal with the Philadelphia 76ers. That move makes Caldwell-Pope an unrestricted free agent, free to sign with any team. Marcus Smart and Isaiah Thomas are also preparing for a big pay day in the summer of 2018.

Morris is a solid 235 pounds, and though he hasn't been known as a rebounder, he averaged 4.6 rebounds last season playing next to Andre Drummond, one of the most dominant rebounders in the National Basketball Association.

The Boston Celtics pulled off a shocking move early on July 7. ESPN reported it would be a four-year deal worth in excess of $50 million.

For the Pistons, though, the peril of potentially going into the luxury tax for to retain Caldwell-Pope and not drastically alter a team that finished 37-45 last season was not a good gamble.

On the court with Andre Drummond and Reggie Jackson, Morris's production was hampered.