After sending Jrue Holiday to the Portland Trailblazers for Anfernee Simons and two second round draft picks less than 24 hours before, the Boston Celtics were busy again on Tuesday evening in moving Kristaps Porzingis and a second round selection to the Atlanta Hawks for Georges Niang and a second round pick as first reported by NBA Insider Shams Charania.
Porzingis (drafted by the New York Knicks in 2015) heads to his fifth NBA team in 10 years. The Latvian center helped lead the Celtics to an NBA Title in 2023-24, but has been hampered by injuries that saw him appear in just 42 games this past season (19.5 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.5 blocks average). Niang was a reserve in Atlanta, and could have a bigger role in Boston with the absence of Jayson Tatum who potentially could miss the entire 2025-26 season. Niang has shot over 40% from three-point range in seven of his nine seasons in the league, and last year averaged 10.4 points per game between Cleveland and Atlanta in appearing in 79 of 82 games. The Hawks also sent Terance Mann and their #22 draft pick to Brooklyn as part of the deal. The Nets now own five picks in the first round. To five some perspective, no team in history has even had four picks in the opening round of the NBA Draft.
