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Mavs trade Richardson to Celtics for Brown

Glenn James / National Basketball Association / Getty

The Dallas Mavericks have traded guard Josh Richardson to the Boston Celtics in exchange for center Moses Brown, the Celtics announced Saturday.

The soon-to-be 28-year-old Richardson put up 12.1 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and a steal per game during his lone season with the Mavericks. However, he largely failed to provide the 3-point shooting and defense Dallas envisioned when the team acquired him from the Philadelphia 76ers a year earlier.

The deal will get done prior to Richardson's 2021-22 salary coming into effect, allowing the Celtics to utilize an $11-million trade exception, according to ESPN's Bobby Marks.

Brown, 21, averaged 8.6 points, 8.9 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks over 43 games with the Oklahoma City Thunder last season. He never appeared in a game for the Celtics after arriving as part of the Kemba Walker-Al Horford deal. Brown will earn $1.7 million in 2021-22 and $1.85 million in 2022-23, and he holds a $2-million team option for the 2023-24 campaign.

Boston initially created a $28.5-million trade exception through the Gordon Hayward sign-and-trade deal with the Charlotte Hornets last year. The Celtics then used $17.5 million of that to acquire Evan Fournier prior to last season's trade deadline.

By trading Richardson and then renouncing the rights to free agents Tim Hardaway Jr. and Willie Cauley-Stein, the Mavericks can create $34 million in cap room, The Athletic's John Hollinger notes. Dallas will reportedly aggressively pursue Toronto Raptors point guard Kyle Lowry this offseason.

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