NBA trade idea: Should the Celtics target Ryan Anderson at the trade deadline?

It is becoming clearer by the day that some kind of change needs to be made with this roster.  However, thus far there have been no credible, original rumors that I've seen in months.  So to work out some frustration and to pass the time, I figured I'd come up with a trade idea or two to spur on discussion on the topic.

The Celtics are firmly cemented in the "buyer" camp at this point in the rebuild process.  They would love to buy themselves a star scorer (or two) but at this point there don't seem to be many teams willing to sell those kinds of players.  In fact, there are surprisingly few teams in the "seller" category at all.  There's the rub.

One team that is a seller at this point is the New Orleans Pelicans.  They are, in essence, the opposite of the Celtics.  They have their bonafide star but don't have the right complimentary pieces to put around him.  I think there could be a match here.

A guy that they might be willing to give up is Ryan Anderson.  He's not the star go-to scorer that we'd love, but he's an excellent shooting stretch-4 that could give the Celtics better spacing in the half court.  Here's what our friends at The Bird Writes had to say about their willingness to deal Ryan.

New Orleans Pelicans who should be on their way out as the team begins to reload around Anthony Davis - The Bird Writes

Ryan Anderson - This is simple. Anderson's contract expires after this season, he is going to get more expensive, and he plays the same position Anthony Davis prefers to play. Anderson and Davis have shown a little promise since the team starting winning a little bit, especially on defense. Posting a 102.6 DRtg together spread over 423 minutes is a significant improvement over 106.7 in 877 minutes last year or 109.4 in 324 minutes in 2013-14. The offense, however, has taken a big step back. It just doesn't work. Anderson can be traded between now and the deadline to recoup some future assets to help build a winner around Davis. The alternatives are to pay him to stay (he won't be cheap) or let him walk in free agency.

So what would it take to get Anderson from them?

Here's an idea from The Bird Writes

• Celtics send: Jared Sullinger, Jonas Jerebko, and the Dallas pick
• Pelicans send: Anderson and a 2017 Philly 2nd rounder

I'm not sure if I am crazy about including the picks but the base of that deal is at least interesting.  It is clean and simple and gives us a 2-for-1 deal that we're looking for.

Pros: Anderson gives us shooting/scoring.  He would more than replace Jerebko's value in floor spacing and could have a higher overall impact than Sullinger on offense.  Also, we woudn't have to match offers on Jared Sullinger this offseason.

Cons: Anderson is a free agent at the end of the year so we'd have to pay up to keep him around.  We'd be giving up our best rebounding presence in Sullinger.  If it costs us a pick, that would reduce our pile of assets slightly.

I'm not sure exactly how well Ryan would fit into Brad's system since he's more of a spot up guy and doesn't create off the dribble like Kelly Olynyk does, but neither does Sullinger and I'd rather have Anderson shooting from beyond the arc than Sully any day.

That alone is worth chewing on, but if you wanted to get really creative you might loop in a 3rd team to send Markiff Morris to the Pels, or maybe even consider taking back Tyreke Evans.  But I'll let you work out those details.

Enjoy the conversation in the comments section (but as always, be nice).