Detroit Pistons: Trading Josh Jackson to the Celtics makes sense
Detroit Pistons: Trading Josh Jackson and Wayne Ellington to the Celtics
This trade was brought up in a Twitter discussion so I want to give credit where it is due.
If we could flip Josh & Wayne (or other considerations) for Aaron Nesmith I would do that in a heartbeat. Would love to add a shooter.
— Rudy (@rudyjuly2) March 16, 2021
I immediately liked this idea, as Aaron Nesmith is a 21-year-old who is currently out of the Celtics’ rotation but could provide something that the Pistons need, which is shooting.
Here is what a trade could look like:
In this trade, the Celtics get depth for their bench and playoff run in Jackson and Ellington. Jackson gives them a defender who could play with both Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, as he has the length to defend a lot of spots.
The Celtics would be long, athletic and versatile on the wing and Jackson would not be asked to do much scoring unless he was shooting wide open corner 3-pointers, which he can hit. He’s asked to do a lot more for the Pistons offensively so some of his flaws would be covered up by the Celtics’ superior playmakers.
Ellington has been one of the best volume 3-point shooters in the NBA this season and would give the Celtics more floor spacing in their second unit.
Neither of these guys cost much, and the Celtics would be getting another year of Jackson at a team-friendly price, so he wouldn’t be just a rental.
The Celtics would do this if they think these two are the depth pieces they need to make a deep run in the playoffs and all they have to give up is a late lottery pick who is not part of the rotation and may not be part of the future plans.
Would the Pistons do this deal?