How former Celtics fared in their debuts for their new teams on Wednesday night

BOSTON -- The Celtics made a few drastic moves over the offseason in hopes of upgrading their roster, and after one game, it looks pretty good. Kristaps Porzingis was the hero in Boston's win over the Knicks, and Jrue Holiday did his thing as a lockdown defender to get their Celtics careers off to a good start.

But what about the departed Celtics who are now in their new uniforms and new NBA homes? The Celtics traded away three players -- Marcus Smart, Malcolm Brogdon, and Robert Williams -- and let restricted free agent Grant Williams leave town by way of a three-team sign-and-trade over the offseason. And all four former C's were in action Wednesday night. 

Each of them played big roles for their new team, but only one of them enjoyed the sweet nectar of victory. Here's how they all fared in their debuts on Wednesday night.

Marcus Smart with the Grizzlies

Result: 111-104 loss to New Orleans Pelicans
Stat line: 17 points, 3 assists, 5 turnovers

Smart got the start with his new team and shot 6-for-11 from the floor and 2-for-6 from 3-point range over 32 minutes. He also fittingly got his first technical foul in his debut for the Grizzlies for .... sarcastically clapping a little too much after a teammate was whistled for a foul. 

He had a pretty good start, assisting on Memphis' second hoop of the game and knocking down his first shot, a 3-pointer that put the Grizz up 8-4. He was 2-for-3 in the first quarter with a pair of dimes and Memphis held a 28-25 lead at the end of the frame.

But the Ja Morant-less Grizzlies didn't have much of a chance the rest of the way, as the Pelicans took control of the game in the second quarter and built their lead to 16 in the fourth.

Grant Williams with the Mavericks

Result: 126-119 win at San Antonio Spurs
Stat line: 17 points, 6 rebounds

Williams got the start at power forward for the Mavs and played 35 minutes, a tick below Kyrie Irving's (remember him!) game-high 36 minutes. And Grant was Grant, sticking his nose in everything and making sure he had an impact on the game.

He shot 6-for-11 and was really feeling it from downtown, hitting four of his eight 3-pointers. He hit all three of his shots in the fourth quarter, and they were all pretty big. Williams scored five straight points off a putback and a three to give Dallas a 108-103 lead with 7:14 to play, and then canned another 3-pointer with 4:12 left to give the Mavs a 115-113 edge.

Williams also played some good defense against rookie sensation Victor Wembanyama. He's still barking at the officials though, much to the chagrin of Luka Doncic.

New team, same old Grant. But it looks like he's gotten really close to Doncic. Really, realllllllllly close. 

Robert Williams, Malcolm Brogdon with the Blazers

Result: 123-111 loss at L.A. Clippers
Brogdon's stat line: 20 points, 5 assists
Williams' stat line: 10 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals

Both former Celtics came off the bench for the Blazers, and both had pretty big games in a losing effort. That's something they'll have to get used to for as long as they remain in Portland.

Brogdon led all Blazers with 16 shot attempts over his 23 minutes, and hit eight of them. He was 3-for-5 from three and led the team in scoring. He'll be putting up plenty of shots for Portland this season. 

Williams was behind DeAndre Ayton in Chauncey Billups' rotation (though the two did play together at one point) and was 5-for-7 from the floor. He had a pair of dunks, including an alley-oop that was slightly less significant than the ones he had in Boston, cutting the Blazers' deficit to 18 in the second quarter.

It wasn't a pretty result, but at least the two former Celtics played well in the Portland loss. And maybe they'll find their way off the tanking Blazers at some point this season.