Grizzlies trade Xavier Tillman Sr. to the Celtics for Lamar Stevens, draft picks
The Memphis Grizzlies traded forward Xavier Tillman Sr. to the Boston Celtics for forward Lamar Stevens and two second-round draft picks, the teams announced Wednesday.
The 6-foot-7 Tillman played in 34 games this season and has averaged 6.0 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. He's averaging 6.2 points per game for his NBA career.
Tillman is set to be a free agent at the end of this season.
Tillman was a second-round pick in the 2020 NBA Draft. He's played his entire NBA career with the Grizzlies and became the starting center last season when Steven Adams went out with an injury.
Wednesday's trade is the second move general manager Zach Kleiman has made ahead of Thursday's trade deadline. Last week, he traded Adams to the Houston Rockets for Victor Oladipo and three second-round picks.
The deadline is Thursday at 2 p.m.
Xavier Tillman Sr. stats
Tillman's minutes increased for the Grizzlies over the past three seasons. In 2022-23, he averaged 7.0 points and 5.0 rebounds per game while playing in 61 games (all career highs).
He's been an effective defender, averaging 1.0 blocks and 1.2 steals this season.
He'll provide frontcourt depth for the Celtics, who have the best record in the NBA and are expected to compete for a championship this season.
Lamar Stevens stats
The 6-6 Stevens — who played four seasons at Penn State — went undrafted and began his NBA career with the Cleveland Cavaliers. He signed with the Celtics before this season.
He's appeared in 19 games for Boston, averaging 2.8 points per game. He averages 5.0 points and 2.7 rebounds per game for his NBA career.
He's also set to be a free agent at the end of the season.
Grizzlies draft picks
The Grizzlies have stockpiled five second-round picks in the past week — three from the Adams trade and two from the Tillman trade. They don't have their own second-round pick in the 2024 draft, and some of those picks are in future drafts, but it gives Kleiman and his staff flexibility with deals moving forward.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Grizzlies trade Xavier Tillman Sr. to Celtics for Lamar Stevens, picks
