Celtics land Isaiah Thomas in trade, deal Tayshaun Prince to Pistons

There was buzz Wednesday and at the start of Thursday’s NBA trade deadline that the Celtics were poised to land star guard Goran Dragic from the Phoenix Suns.

Celtics president of basketball ops Danny Ainge did swing a deal with his front office disciple, Suns GM Ryan McDonough, right before the 3 p.m. deadline, but it wasn’t Dragic. Instead, the C’s landed 5-foot-9 inch point guard Isaiah Thomas in exchange for Marcus Thornton and the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 2016 first round pick.

Ainge has long been a fan of Thomas, dating back to the tiny guard’s days at the University of Washington.

Thomas packs a scoring punch for a point guard, as he is averaging 15.2 points per game this season and averaged 20.3 points per game in 2013-14 when he was a member of the Sacramento Kings. He also averaged a career-high 6.3 assists per game last season.

The Celtics also dealt away Tayshaun Prince to Detroit, according to multiple reports. Boston receives Jonas Jerebko and Luigi Datome from the Pistons.

Thomas signed a four-year, $27 million contract with the Suns this past summer.

Thomas could be in uniform for the Celtics’ first game in nine days Friday night, when they take on the Kings in Sacramento (10 p.m., CSNNE).

Despite a 20-31 record, the Celtics are just 1.5 games back of Miami for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.