John Collins is a talented big man who plays for the Atlanta Hawks. Collins is an elite inside scorer and rebounder, who is also able to score from beyond the arc. John Collins is a skilled power forward who also has natural athleticism, making him one of the top young talents in the league. His box score numbers have slightly decreased, but one can attribute that to having other offensive talents on the roster such as De’Andre Hunter and Danilo Gallinari.
Recently, John Collins has been linked to the Boston Celtics. The Boston Celtics are in need of a solid big man, and as Collins is on an expiring deal, they may look to target him. It should be stated that the Boston Celtics have a huge trade exception worth $28,500,000 from the Gordon Hayward sign-and-trade. Collins also notably turned down an extension from the Atlanta Hawks this past offseason. His abilities would be able to fill the needs of the Celtics’ roster. An article for The Athletic detailed a potential trade package that would involve some of the Boston Celtics’ picks and young prospects.
Boston Celtics Receive: John Collins
Atlanta Hawks Receive: Payton Pritchard, Carsen Edwards, 2021 first-round pick, 2023 first-round pick, 2025 first-round pick (top-25 protected)
The potential trade could be enticing for both teams. The Atlanta Hawks would get some solid young talent, and those picks could be useful down the line. If the Atlanta Hawks don’t want to pay John Collins big money during the upcoming offseason, they could elect to trade him. Here is what the article had to say about the potential interest in Collins from the Celtics:
Jay King:Danny Ainge has made it clear what he wants to find at the trade deadline: A shooter with size. Because the Celtics are building around Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, the ideal scenario would be to find pieces who can help immediately but also grow alongside those two guys. Collins would be an interesting target because of his youth, production and versatility. He has proven himself as a roll man. He has proven he can succeed on the perimeter. He’s still not the world’s greatest defender, but adding a 6-foot-9, athletic power forward could give Boston more options on that side of the court.
Kirschner: So to write it out clearly, it would be Prichard, Edwards, two firsts and a second.
… If this is the best deal Schlenk thinks he can get, and he knows he isn’t going to match a $100-plus million offer sheet, then it makes sense. I, personally, wouldn’t feel great about it, but these are the tough decisions general managers have to make when it comes to team building.
Weiss: OK, let’s see if we can push this over the finish line then. How would Schlenk feel turning that second into a vanishing first, giving it a top-25 protection that then converts into a pair of seconds if it doesn’t convey? So that would be Pritchard, Edwards, firsts in ’21 and ’23 and a vanishing first in ’25.
Kirschner: I think that’s enough draft capital to get a deal done with Boston. Definitely would see if any team wanted to include a better young player in the deal before making this one, but with the possibility of three firsts, let’s make a deal.
This seems like an interesting possibility for both sides. Losing Payton Pritchard would hurt for the Boston Celtics, but getting an elite player who could become a star in the right environment could be worth it. If this trade does happen, then it would make the Celtics a top-tier contender in the Eastern Conference. It remains to be seen whether this trade will actually happen, and all we can do is wait and see.
