Brogdon says he chose Celtics over Raptors as desired trade destination

Guard Malcolm Brogdon told Sirius XM Radio this week that he preferred the Boston Celtics over the Toronto Raptors when faced with the opportunity this summer to move on from the Indiana Pacers.

The Pacers traded Brogdon to Boston in July for five players and a 2023 first-round pick.

Brogdon said after the Pacers approached him about potential trade destinations, he was given a choice between the two Eastern Conference contenders.

“At the end of the day, we knew there was Boston, we knew Toronto we knew [the Washington Wizards]… D.C. fell off after the draft since they were thinking about trading that 10th pick for me. Toronto and Boston popped up. We had a choice to pursue,” the six-year veteran said.

“There wasn’t an offer on the table yet from either of them, but the Pacers came to me and said we could pursue either of them and which one would I rather pursue? I choose Boston.” Brogdon added he felt the Celtics, a team coming off a trip to the NBA Finals earlier this year, was farther along than the Raptors as an organization.

“They have a superstar in Jayson Tatum and probably another superstar in Jaylen Brown as well. I thought it would be a great fit for me because I wanted to win right now.” Boston went 51-31 last season to reach the playoffs for the eighth consecutive year, advancing to the Finals after defeating the Miami Heat in seven games. The Raptors bounced back from a difficult 2020-21 season by going 48-34 to finish fifth in the East but were bounced in the opening round of the playoffs by the Philadelphia 76ers.

The Virginia product was selected in the second round by the Milwaukee Bucks in the 2016 NBA Draft and established himself as an efficient combo guard in Milwaukee, winning Rookie of the Year in