UPDATE (4:21 PM PT): The Celtics have agreed to send Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic and Brooklyn’s first round pick to Cleveland for Kyrie Irving according to Shams Charania of The Vertical:
Celtics are sending Thomas, Crowder, Ante Zizic and Brooklyn's 2018 first-round pick for Kyrie Irving, league sources tell The Vertical. https://t.co/gdaT9UjVGl
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 22, 2017
Cleveland Cavaliers star Kyrie Irving dropped a bomb on the league this offseason when he demanded to be traded, citing LeBron James as the reason despite the Cavaliers making three straight Finals appearances.
Very few teams in the league have the assets to deal for a player of Irving’s caliber though, which is why to this point no deal has come to fruition.
One team that has enough assets to make a deal is the Boston Celtics, but considering the Cavaliers and Celtics were the top two teams in the Eastern Conference last year and faced off the the Conference Finals, it didn’t seem like they would be trade partners.
But according to Shams Charania of The Vertical, the two teams are currently involved in active trade discussions involving Irving and Celtics star point guard Isaiah Thomas:
Cleveland and Boston engaged in active trade discussions centered on Kyrie Irving and Isaiah Thomas, league sources tell The Vertical.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 22, 2017
If the two teams weren’t both atop the East the trade would make a lot of sense, as Thomas is set to hit free agency next summer and the Celtics may not be willing to offer him the max extension that he desires and deserves.
The Cavaliers getting a star player like Thomas in return for Irving is exactly what they are looking for as it gives them an opportunity to compete for a championship this season with Thomas, LeBron James and Kevin Love, and then if James leaves in free agency next summer they still have a player in Thomas that they could build around if they are able to sign him to an extension.
Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge has been known to be very careful with the assets he worked so hard to acquire though, so it remains to be seen if the two sides will be able to work out a deal and what other players or draft picks would be involved other than the two stars.
