The Boston Celtics trade Marcus Smart for John Collins in a B/R ‘panic trade’

Boston Celtics President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens is reportedly a busy man ahead of the February 10th NBA trade deadline.

As he should be.

We’re into the second straight year of Massachusetts mediocrity from one of the league’s banner franchises, meaning that the 2020-21 season wasn’t just a COVID-effected anomaly of a campaign.

No, the Celtics as constructed are just not good enough to make any significant noise in the NBA’s Eastern Conference, which has become the Association’s superior half and most certainly shed the label of ‘leastern conference’.

Does all of this mean that Boston should make a panic trade? Well, if it involves Jaylen Brown, then abso-freakin-lutely not.

But what Greg Swartz of Bleacher Report has in mind would be ideal:

"Boston Celtics Receive:PF John CollinsAtlanta Hawks Receive:G Marcus SmartG/F Josh Richardson"

Why the Boston Celtics do it

A John Collins-Robert Williams frontcourt would be high-flying, death-defying, mesmerizing, and ultimately, a satisfying next step for the Boston Celtics as they continue to figure out what works around the ‘Jays’.

We know what doesn’t: non-shooting. Dennis Schroder, Marcus Smart, and Al Horford have been less than ideal floor-spacers for the star pair, so landing a career 39% 3-point shooter is an ideal way to open things up for Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown when they take their opponent one-on-one.

Losing Josh Richardson hurts the depth of the second unit, and asks a lot out of young guys like Romeo Langford and Aaron Nesmith. Stevens could address that in whatever deal he ends up finding for Dennis Schroder.

Why the Atlanta Hawks do it

I’m going to be honest…I don’t know if I could find a reason why the Hawks would do this unless the John Collins-Trae Young relationship really is just that shaky that Atlanta’s success hinges upon eliminating any roadblocks to their franchise point guard’s happiness.