Why Malcolm Brogdon believes he'll be a great fit with Celtics

BOSTON -- Malcolm Brogdon has been a starter for the last four years of his career, but that will change now that the 29-year-old guard has joined the Boston Celtics.

Brogdon will come off the bench for the Celtics after being acquired in a trade with the Indiana Pacers. Celtics president of basketball ops. Brad Stevens made that clear to Brogdon's agent when hashing out the swap with Indiana.

Brogdon, to his credit, sounds completely on board with his new role on his new team. Especially if it gives him the best shot at winning a championship.

"[Stevens] talked about me coming into Boston and embracing a sixth man role," Brogdon said on ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski podcast on Monday. "If I wanted to come to Boston, that would be one of the things I needed to embrace. For me, I've made a lot of money. Whatever I can sacrifice to get back to that championship level, I'm willing to do it."

Brogdon will bring a solid scoring punch to the Boston bench, something that was sorely lacking at times during the team's run to the NBA Finals. A strong playmaker out of the backcourt, Brogdon averaged 19.1 points, 5.9 assists, and 5.1 rebounds for Indiana last season. 

While the Celtics didn't surrender much in their swap with the Pacers -- with a 2023 first-round pick the highlight of the package for Indy --  Boston will be paying a big price tag for Brogdon. He's set to make over $22 million in each of the next three seasons.

For a team that was already over the luxury tax, picking up Brogdon and his contract shows that the Celtics are all-in on winning a title in the coming years.

"They already have a high payroll. It's a testament to the Boston Celtics and how much they want to win; they are willing to spend and willing to have a guy making $20 million come off the bench as a sixth man and help them win a championship," Brogdon said of the trade.

Brogdon sees himself fitting seamlessly into Boston's offense and defensive systems. In addition to bench scoring, the veteran will give Ime Udoka another hard-nosed defensive guard to send out at opposing scorers going forward.

"Defensively, they were the best defensive team in the NBA; I think the gap only widens now that I'm on the team," he said confidently.

"I don't think it could really be a better fit," Brogdon added. "It's fortuitous. I was meant to be there."