The Boston Celtics, Golden State Warriors and Miami Heat agreed to a three-team trade on Wednesday.
Boston will ship guards MarShon Brooks and Jordan Crawford to Golden State, which, in turn, will send guard Toney Douglas to Miami.
Meanwhile, the Celtics will receive forward Joel Anthony from the Heat and two draft picks: a Philadelphia 76ers first-round pick that is lottery-protected for the next two seasons (it will turn into two second-round picks if not conveyed) as well as the Heat’s second-round pick in 2016.
The motivations behind this trade are clear. For two of the three teams involved, there could be even bigger rewards down the line. Here’s a look:
Heat
Miami saved $6.4 million in luxury-tax payments for this season, while also getting out of the $3.8 million owed to Anthony next season. In the end, the move could save the Heat more than $15 million in salary and luxury taxes.
This money-saving move also adds to the speculation Miami could be looking to take a flyer on Andrew Bynum, whose time in Cleveland ended with a suspension for “conduct detrimental to the team,” followed by being traded to the Bulls for Luol Deng — and then immediately being released by the Bulls.
Celtics
Point guard Rajon Rondo, who has missed almost a full year since tearing his ACL late last January, was assigned to the Maine Red Claws of the D-League on Wednesday for a workout before his return, which could happen as early as Friday.
“Rajon is progressing terrifically in his rehab and this is the next step,” Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge said in a statement. “This is a brief assignment so that Rajon can participate in a workout this afternoon with the Red Claws and he will be called back up to the Celtics upon the conclusion of the workout.”
With Rondo’s return, as well as the recent acquisition of Jerryd Bayless — formerly of the Memphis Grizzlies — the Celtics faced a glut in the backcourt and cleared it up by trading Crawford and Brooks.
Warriors
Crawford, who is averaging 13.7 points and a career-high 5.7 assists per game, will invigorate Golden State’s second unit, which has struggled of late. He will try and fill the reserve guard role that Jarrett Jack, now with the Cavaliers, flourished in last season.