The Celtics finally agreed to give the Cavaliers what they wanted. It may not have been the compensation that the Cleveland Cavaliers wanted, but it was something. The Kyrie Irving-Isaiah Thomas blockbuster trade is finally complete as the Celtics agreed to give the Cavaliers a 2020 second round pick, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. The Celtics are also sending Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic, and Brooklyn's 2018 unprotected first round pick to Cleveland.
The Celtics have had a busy offseason. The team signed Gordon Hayward to a max contract. They sent their top scorer to the Cavaliers for Irving.
The team traded Avery Bradley to the Detroit Pistons. All in all, the No. 1 seed in the eastern conference this past season will only have one of their starters remaining from last year's lineup in Al Horford.
Physical held up the deal
Cleveland believed that Boston was not up front about the health status of Thomas's hip. They believed that it needed surgery and could hamper his season. However, Thomas has made comments that his hip is fine and it will not affect his season. The Cavaliers wanted extra compensation for what the physical found. This led to a stalemate that was eventually settled by the Celtics agreeing to give up a 2020 second round pick.
Was it what Cleveland wanted? Most likely not.
However, was Dan Gilbert really going to throw away getting Thomas when there were likely no other better offers out there? It would have been foolish for this deal to slide through the cracks, so they should be happy for what they received. Crowder is a solid defender and role player. Zizic might be a great backup for Tristan Thompson.
Thomas will give you 20-points a night, and if LeBron James walks, the teams has flexibility to rebuild with two first round picks in next year's draft.
Both sides win in the deal
The Celtics get two years of Irving and didn't end up with nothing as Thomas was likely to walk after this season. Thomas was making around $6 million this season and is due for a huge pay raise.
The Celtics believe they have enough to take down the Cavaliers. However, the Cavaliers could make a case that they won the trade. The team still has James and Kevin Love. Then, you throw in Thomas, Crowder, Thompson, and JR Smith. If Kyle Korver and Deron Williams step up this season, the Cavaliers could have a deep rotation. All in all, it is going to be a fun season to start off when these two square up in their first game of the season.
