Celtics, Thunder and Grizzlies Complete Three-Team Trade

Courtney Lee and Jerryd Bayless

Courtney Lee is heading to Memphis while Jerryd Bayless is off to Beantown to be a Celtic.


Hidden behind the Luol Deng/Andrew Bynum trade, another pretty big trade also happened today in the NBA.  The Celtics traded SG Courtney Lee and a 2016 second pick to the Memphis Grizzlies in exchange for Jerryd Bayless.  To make this happen, the Grizzlies additionally traded second round picks in 2014 and 2017 to the Thunder who shipped Ryan Gomes to the Celtics who would waive him almost immediately after.

Boston Celtics

A few weeks ago, this trade would have made obvious sense for the Celtics.  They were still in the playoff race and were asking Avery Bradley to carry the load at PG.  However, just a few days ago the Boston Globe published an article stating Rajon Rondo was “pretty close” to returning to the Celtics; they further explained that “pretty close” meant a few more weeks.  Avery Bradley hasn’t been that bad so far the Celtics, as he’s second on the team in scoring with 14.1 PPG while shooting 45% from the floor.  The big knock on him is his passing; he’s only averaging 1.3 APG which is extremely low for a PG playing over 30 minutes a game.

So bring in Jerry Bayless who’s probably considered one of the better backup PG’s in the NBA.  The six-year veteran out of Arizona was averaging 8.1 PPG, 2.1 APG and 1.9 RPG in 21 minutes for the Grizzlies.  While Rajon Rondo remains sidelined due to injury, I would expect him to see an increase in minutes while Bradley could see a slight decrease.  I’m assuming the Celtics will go to a two-PG rotation.  There isn’t much of a difference in the caliber of the two players, and they both bring different assets to the table, so I could realistically see them both getting around 24 minutes per game.

My question is, what happens when Rajon Rondo returns?  This is supposed to be in the foreseeable future and when it does, the Celtics all of a sudden have a logjam at PG.  Once Rondo returns up to game speed, he’ll begin to hog all the minutes at PG.  So what do you do with Bradley and Bayless who both will still be expecting minutes off the bench?  Either man could potentially play some time at SG, but not for an extended amount of time.

I really think the Celtics could hurt without Courtney Lee.  Yes, it’s a small sample size, but Lee is currently ninth in the NBA in three-point percentage.  He was an ideal backup to Jordan Crawford who’s only shooting 33% from behind the arc.

Trade Grade: C+

Memphis Grizzlies

If Courtney Lee can remain in the form he’s in right now, this will prove to be a great trade for the Grizzlies.  We all know Tony Allen is one of the best perimeter defenders in the NBA, and he’ll continue to be the man in Memphis at SG, but Lee will offer a great dynamic off the bench.  As great as Allen is defensively, he’s only shooting 18.5% on three-point attempts which is a huge liability to the team.  Memphis continues to fall farther and farther behind for a playoff spot in the ridiculously competitive West, but if Lee can come in and knockdown three three-pointers a game, it really helps their chances to get back in the chase to steal a spot.

Jerryd Bayless was a very reliably backup PG for Memphis, but Mike Conley is already playing 34 MPG, and I think he’s capable to play 40.  As long as he remains healthy, Memphis shouldn’t need a second PG on many occasions and Bayless shouldn’t be missed too much.

Trade Grade: A-

Oklahoma City Thunder

Not much has changed for Oklahoma City.  They never used Ryan Gomes, so acquiring two second round picks for him isn’t too shabby.  They could find a diamond in the rough with one of these future picks or use them for future trade sweeteners.  It could prove to be a productive mood so I’ll give them a good grade.

Trade Grade: A

By Brian Emory

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