FS1’s Nick Wright couldn’t help but take aim at Danny Ainge and the Boston Celtics in the hours leading up to the 2021 NBA trade deadline.
The Orlando Magic made waves Thursday by reportedly trading All-Star center Nikola Vucevic and Al-Farouq Aminu to the Chicago Bulls for Wendell Carter Jr., Otto Porter Jr. and two first-round draft picks.
Vucevic had been linked to Boston in trade rumors, so the blockbuster deal prompted a sarcastic response from Wright, a known Celtics hater.
“How long until a reporter in the greater Boston area tells us how Danny Ainge was thisclose to getting Vucevic but the deal just couldn’t get done?,” Wright tweeted.
The polarizing “First Things First” pundit wasn’t done, either.
Mere minutes later, it was reported that Boston was on the verge of acquiring Orlando wing Evan Fournier for two second-round picks. While the trade should improve the Celtics’ chances of turning around their disappointing season, Wright wasn’t overly impressed with the transaction.
“Another transaction/trade that the Ainge ‘wins’ while not tangibly improving his team whatsoever as their window continues to slam shut,” Wright tweeted.
Still, Wright wasn’t done.
MassLive’s Brian Robb sought to explain the Fournier trade on Twitter, pointing out how the Celtics could proceed this offseason. And Wright fired another shot in Boston’s direction.
“The jokes write themselves at this point!,” he tweeted.
Wright actually might be accurate in his assessment. Not only has Ainge been reluctant to pull the trigger on a franchise-altering trade, despite once having a full cupboard of draft picks and being linked to nearly every star player under the sun. Boston also probably isn’t a legitimate NBA Finals contender this season, with or without Fournier.
Yet there’s still this widespread belief that Ainge can do no wrong on the trade market. When other teams make significant moves, it’s often followed up by reports that the Celtics looked into such trades before balking at the asking price. (Look at the James Harden trade, for example.)
The Celtics, who’ve lost five of their last six games, entered Thursday with a 21-23 record after suffering a crushing defeat to the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday night.
