Celtics may have a Malcolm Brogdon problem

Brogdon was almost dealt to the Los Angeles Clippers before the NBA Draft before concerns about Brogdon's right elbow injury scuttled the deal. Instead, Boston pivoted, and traded Marcus Smart to Memphis in a three-team deal that got them Kristaps Porzingis.

Smart was the starter at point guard last season, and this year that job is Derrick White's to lose. Brogdon is expected to come off the bench, where he thrived last season, winning Sixth Man of the Year. But Brogdon was reportedly unhappy with the Celtics for trying to trade him, and even coach Joe Mazzulla acknowledged there would have to be a "healing process" for Brogdon and the team.

In late July, Mazzulla told reporters, "There's a listening process, there's a healing process and there's a process towards seeing where we're at and where we have to get to." He added that the team wanted to "move forward as well as we can."

Brogdon hasn't spoken to the media, so it's unclear if he's still upset, or the status of his elbow. Brad Stevens was confident that Brogdon would be ready for the season, but mentioned that surgery was a possibility. 

Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe speculated that if Brogdon was still upset about the trade, "He could just say, 'I'm not getting no surgery. I'm going to wait for this to heal,'" as a "protest" against the aborted deal.

We won't know until the Celtics have media day next month how Brogdon feels, both physically and emotionally. Until then, neither the Celtics and the public will know what they have at the guard position.