A blockbuster three-team trade between the Washington Wizards, Boston Celtics, and Los Angeles Clippers was reportedly very close to getting done on Wednesday. However, it has since fallen apart due to injury concerns for one player in the deal.
The deal that was all but finalized would have sent Wizards star Kristaps Porzingis to the Celtics, Malcolm Brogdon to the Clippers, and Marcus Morris, Amir Coffey, and the No. 30 pick in the 2023 NBA Draft to the Wizards.
NBA insider Marc Stein reported on Wednesday night that the Clippers are concerned about Brogdon’s injury status, which led to the deal falling apart.
It sounds like the Clippers are fully out of this deal. However, Stein did add that a direct deal between the Wizards and Celtics that would send Porzingis to the Celtics has not been ruled out.
The importance of this deal potentially happening on Wednesday is that Porzingis has a $36 million player option with the Wizards, which is set to expire at midnight. This means that if no deal is made Porzingis could simply become a free agent without the Wizards getting anything in return for him.
The NBA world had plenty to say on this development, offering their opinions of the failed three-team trade on social media.
It certainly seems crucial for the Wizards to do everything they can to try and get something in return for Porzingis. It seems extremely likely that he would opt out of his player option, especially since the team opted to trade Bradley Beal to the Phoenix Suns earlier this month.