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After missing out on Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Celtics have been linked to a trade for Trey Murphy

The Boston Celtics have been busy over the past 48 hours or so, but they haven’t managed to make any moves of note. The Giannis Antetokounmpo trade saga came to an end when the Miami Heat completed a deal for him late Monday night, which put the Celtics in a tough spot after they publicly included Jaylen Brown in their offer for the Milwaukee Bucks legend.

With the 2026 NBA Draft just hours away, nobody really knows where things stand with Brown and the C’s. Reports have indicated that the team is listening to offers for him, and if he does end up getting dealt, one guy whose name keeps getting brought up is New Orleans Pelicans star Trey Murphy, with one insider labeling him the team’s “plan B” option.

Celtics Linked to Trey Murphy Trade

Boston emerged from out of nowhere as the frontrunner for Antetokounmpo after it reportedly created a trade offer centered around Brown and a pair of first-round draft picks. Ultimately, the Bucks decided to accept the Heat’s offer, which featured cost-controlled talent and several additional picks and pick swaps that the C’s were not willing to part with.

While you can’t fault Brad Stevens and company for not going overboard to land Antetokounmpo, it has put the team in a tough spot, because it has made it clear it is willing to trade Brown, only for its offer to come up short. If Brown is still going to get dealt, the number of deals that are actually worth pulling off is very minimal.

Murphy is one guy the team has been interested in for quite some time now, but Boston isn’t the only team that is expected to make a move for him. According to NBA insider Sam Amick of The Athletic, the Celtics have identified Murphy as a potential “plan B” option after missing out on Antetokounmpo, and while the Pelicans could wind up dealing him ahead of the 2026 draft, the C’s may face some stiff competition for his services.

“There is definitely a bunch of Trey Murphy noise,” Amick said on KNBR 680’s “Murph & Markus” with John Dickinson and Larry Krueger. “It seems pretty clear that he has also signaled a desire to play elsewhere. The market is going to be pretty robust … [With] Boston, actually, Trey is seen as a potential plan B for them if they miss out on Giannis, which they obviously did.”

Should the Celtics Trade for Trey Murphy?

GettyTrey Murphy III of the New Orleans Pelicans.

Over the past two seasons, Murphy has turned himself into a consistent scorer for a Pelicans offense that desperately needed someone to step up and find a way to put the ball in the basket. Murphy’s 2025-26 campaign was the best season of his career (21.5 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 3.8 APG, 47 FG%), but he still isn’t exactly the same caliber of player as Brown (who would likely be headed the other way in any potential trade).

Trading Brown for Antetokounmpo made sense, but again, it’s tough to find another player who would be worth giving him up for. Murphy is solid, but he would be a downgrade from Brown, even though he’s under team control with no options for the next three seasons. Boston is looking to win now, and unless it can acquire Murphy without giving up Brown, trading for him would be a foolish mistake.