NBA

Pistons receive: Troy Brown, Shake Milton and a second-round pick
Timberwolves receive: Monte Morris

Rostering Morris and his expiring deal didn’t make much sense for Detroit other than the veteran serving as a mentor for Detroit’s young guards, so moving him isn’t a terrible idea.

Brown and Milton have a place in the NBA, but Morris is a solid backup point guard, and gives Minnesota more staying power towards the top of the Western Conference – at a limited cost. Morris has appeared in just six games this season, but if he can turn in a level of play that comes anywhere close to his performance last year with Washington, the Timberwolves will be in good shape. Also, Morris’ style of play practically mirrors that of Mike Conley’s, so his transition should be quite easy.

Pistons Grade: C-
Timberwolves Grade: A

Celtics receive: Xavier Tillman
Grizzlies receive: Two second-round picks

This is a smart move along the margins for the Celtics, who are probably thinking about going up against centers such as Nikola Jokic, Joel Embiid and Jarrett Allen come playoff time. Boston needed some additional depth up front, and Tillman is a perfect fit.

Tillman has struggled a bit for the Grizzlies this season, shooting just 40.8 percent from the field, so receiving two second-round picks for a player that isn’t important to the team’s future is a good return.

Celtics Grade: B+
Grizzlies Grade: B+

Jazz receive: Kevin Knox, draft rights to Gabriele Procida and a second-round pick
Pistons receive: Simone Fontecchio

The 26-26 Jazz have too much depth basically all throughout their roster, so moving Fontecchio makes sense — just not at this price. If Utah had waited just one more day, I bet the Jazz would’ve been able to extract more value in a deal.

I expected Fontecchio to fetch a greater return than this, so good on Detroit for making this move. The 28-year-old forward has been a late bloomer for Utah, but he’s a rotation-caliber player, and this trade gives the Pistons a leg-up in his restricted free agency this summer.

Jazz Grade: C+
Pistons Grade: B-