CANTON, Mass. — Malcolm Brogdon wasn’t just along for the ride when the Indiana Pacers decided to trade the veteran guard this summer.
In fact, Brogdon revealed during Celtics media day on Monday the Pacers gave him the choice to pick his next destination among a small group of teams, and Boston stood out above the rest since it put Brogdon on a team that’s not only capable of winning in abundance, but also is one of the favorites to take home the NBA title this season.
“I was excited,” Brogdon said. “The Pacers did me really well. They gave me the option to pick between a few teams and I picked Boston because I want to win. I want to win. It doesn’t matter if I’m sixth man. Whatever role I’m playing I’m going to accept and I’m going to thrive in it and embrace it because I want to add on to what this team has. This team is a great unit, great chemistry, they’re on the verge of winning a championship as we saw and they need a little bit more. So, I want to come and add on to what’s already going on.”
The 29-year-old Brogdon obviously sees himself as the missing piece the Celtics need to get their hands on the Larry O’Brien Trophy. And he just might be.
Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens said this offseason he wanted to improve the team’s playmaking around Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, which is a box Brogdon checks off. Last season in 36 games with the Pacers, the 6-foot-5, 229-pound guard tallied 19.1 points, 5.9 assists and 5.1 rebounds per game. And it was just four seasons ago Brogdon put himself in the highly exclusive 40-50-90 shooting club while playing for the Milwaukee Bucks.
Brogdon’s ability on the offensive end of the floor should alleviate the pressure put on Tatum and Brown to score when defenses are keying in on them. And Brogdon shot down the notion of any potential riffs between him and Marcus Smart, who plays the same position. Brogdon also gave a very strong endorsement of Celtics interim head coach Joe Mazzulla.
Brogdon has fit in seamlessly since the Celtics acquired him for five players, including Daniel Theis and Aaron Nesmith, along with a 2023 first-round pick. On his third team as he enters his seventh NBA season, Brogdon seems intent on doing whatever it takes to get a ring on his finger, and made sure he would get that type of opportunity in Boston.
