playa-hater wrote:lon3lytoaster wrote:playa-hater wrote:Maybe Brad does a surprise and takes 30 + whatever 2nds we have (over the next few years) and targets a player and moves up from 30. Never say never. One reason why I will eventually be looking at any player projected pick 20 and down.
Nah, Brad is bizarro Danny. Hates drafting.
Odds are you are right.. But Brad often does the unexpected. So maybe....
Every year we think Brad is gonna do that and he never does. In fact, he ends up doing the opposite. Trading down instead of trading up.
With 1st round picks (especially picks in the top 20) they get guaranteed contracts, they get a higher salary and there's much higher expectations that the player is going to contribute and contribute sooner rather than later, more pressure on that player to perform, more backlash for that player (and for Brad) if that player falls short of expectations, etc.
With a team like the Celtics (depth at every position, talent at every position, veterans at every position..best roster in the league, title contender for the foreseeable future) anyone we draft is gonna be a long shot to get playing time - especially in year 1. So that causes a conflict with the expectations (and higher salary and guaranteed contract) described in the previous paragraph.
Given the statements in the last paragraph, all we can realistically hope for for any draft pick (even one in the top 20) is for them to maybe carve out a role as like a 7th-9th man. Look who we have in those spots right now. Pritchard (26th pick but was projected to go in the 2nd round), Hauser (UDFA), Kornet (UDFA a who we acquired via trade when he was like 27 and had been in the league a few yrs)..we've got Brissett playing a solid role (UDFA who we signed to a veterans minimum contract after he had been in the league a few yrs), Tillman (35th pick, acquired via trade after he had been in the league a few yrs)
Brad's blueprint seems pretty clear to me. He doesn't really do unexpected things. He makes big moves (KP, Jrue, Al, White, Brogdon) only when it's to acquire a STUD who is a proven NBA player, who has been in the league for 5+ years, is age 27+ and is going to be a top 6 player on a title contender from day 1 in Boston. He has 2-4 stars making $30mil or more each. Another 1-3 guys who are your key role players, are top 6 guys making $10-$20 mil each..and he fills out the rest of the roster with guys on minimum contracts or a guy like Pritchard next year who will be on one of the cheaper rookie scale extensions in recent memory. He hates 1st round picks, and he drafts 1 guy in the 2nd round, picks up 1 UDFA and tries to maximize those 2 selections with good scouting and good job by our development staff.
