Jay Williams Makes A Bold Statement About Celtics After Kristaps Porzingis Trade

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The Boston Celtics may have gotten a lot better on paper with the acquisition of Kristaps Porzingis.

But giving up Marcus Smart was a steep price to pay to get the Latvian big man in Boston.

However, as tough as things could get for Joe Mazzulla’s team going forward, NBA analyst Jay Williams believes that the Celtics are now officially the best team in the Eastern Conference.

Williams cites that the Milwaukee Bucks and every other team in the conference cannot rest on their laurels anymore, and they’ll have to try and make some moves to counter this acquisition.

.@RealJayWilliams believes Porzingis makes the Celtics the best team in the East pic.twitter.com/VAHYNGZPPr

— First Take (@FirstTake) June 22, 2023

He also said that Joe Mazzulla and Brad Stevens need to make sure that Porzingis gets to work out with Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown in the offseason, citing that they need to get on the same page to be able to defer to each other when things get tough.

Williams pointed out that Smart was the player who usually stepped up in tough times with his grit and his grind, adding that it’ll now be up to their young stars to take that step forward when it matters the most now that he’s gone.

Smart was their vocal leader on and off the court, and losing that kind of player could take a massive toll on any team, a toll that goes way beyond the stat sheet.

But from a basketball standpoint, it’s hard to choose a team in the East that’s better suited for championship contention than the Celtics right now.