Appreciation Thread, Anton Watson (Boston/Maine) – (Waived March 2, 2025)

[165bows]

Who is this guy. I hope he's good. At least he's tall.

Bit of a slow mo/PJ Tucker type.

He always looks bigger than 6'8" to me, I think he has a thick head.

[Smart2Nesmith43]

Sounds like a smart player that can switch defensively and pass a little bit. The shooting seems pretty iffy considering the small sample size from three but there are no perfrct prospect this late in the draft. He got better every year in college so let's see if he can grind his way up from Maine to Boston.

[Hal14]

Some players look two years away from being two years away. This pic looks more like he is two years away from being gone Answer retirement

Yeah. I'd feel better if these Guys were 19 when they come in, instead of 24.
Give them some time to develop at the NBA level. Starting at 24 though, IDK.

Scheirman and Watson right now are 23 yrs old.

Age when they were drafted:

Derrick white - 23
Fred VanVleet - 22
Austin Reaves - 23
Herb Jones - 22
Alex Caruso - 22
Sam Hauser - 23
Kenrich Williams - 23
Malcolm Brogdon - 23
Caleb Martin - 23
Jaime Jaquez - 22
Max Strus - 23
Payton Pritchard - 22
Duncan Robinson - 24
Cam Johnson - 22
Pascal Siakam - 22
Andrew Nembhard - 22
Buddy Hield - 23

A lot of the super young guys we have tried to draft haven't worked out so well (Madar, Begarin, Langford, Walsh, Davison, etc.)

[BK_2020]

Who is this guy. I hope he's good. At least he's tall.

Bit of a slow mo/PJ Tucker type.

He always looks bigger than 6'8" to me, I think he has a thick head.

Slo-mo would be a great outcome for 54th pick. 62% free throw shooting is kinda scary.

[phincsfan]

Some players look two years away from being two years away. This pic looks more like he is two years away from being gone Answer retirement

Yeah. I'd feel better if these Guys were 19 when they come in, instead of 24.
Give them some time to develop at the NBA level. Starting at 24 though, IDK.

Scheirman and Watson right now are 23 yrs old.

Age when they were drafted:

Derrick white - 23
Fred VanVleet - 22
Austin Reaves - 23
Herb Jones - 22
Alex Caruso - 22
Sam Hauser - 23
Kenrich Williams - 23
Malcolm Brogdon - 23
Caleb Martin - 23
Jaime Jaquez - 22
Max Strus - 23
Payton Pritchard - 22
Duncan Robinson - 24
Cam Johnson - 22
Pascal Siakam - 22
Andrew Nembhard - 22
Buddy Hield - 23

A lot of the super young guys we have tried to draft haven't worked out so well (Madar, Begarin, Langford, Walsh, Davison, etc.)

Just a quick glance, but that group can sure shoot the 3 ball. Interesting.

[darrendaye]

Guessing he is a 2-way contract guy, but maybe not at 24 already. He a ball of energy, gets after it on the boards, very solid passing for a 4, and very quick hands (saw a quote from John Stockton that MIGHT be a bit over the top) for steals and deflections. Wanted a longer and perhaps more dynamic prospect, but, I like the fit as a reserve 4.

[ConstableGeneva]

[Shak_Celts]

ok. good luck kid! You're a Celts, that's all that matters!

[Parliament10]

Some players look two years away from being two years away. This pic looks more like he is two years away from being gone Answer retirement

Yeah. I'd feel better if these Guys were 19 when they come in, instead of 24.
Give them some time to develop at the NBA level. Starting at 24 though, IDK.

Scheirman and Watson right now are 23 yrs old.

Age when they were drafted:

Derrick white - 23
Fred VanVleet - 22
Austin Reaves - 23
Herb Jones - 22
Alex Caruso - 22
Sam Hauser - 23
Kenrich Williams - 23
Malcolm Brogdon - 23
Caleb Martin - 23
Jaime Jaquez - 22
Max Strus - 23
Payton Pritchard - 22
Duncan Robinson - 24
Cam Johnson - 22
Pascal Siakam - 22
Andrew Nembhard - 22
Buddy Hield - 23

A lot of the super young guys we have tried to draft haven't worked out so well (Madar, Begarin, Langford, Walsh, Davison, etc.)

Read on Twitter

They'll both be 24, when the Season begins.

[Homerclease]

Well, we certainly had a type this year. Both picks seem ready to contribute sooner rather than later. High floor low ceiling types but theoretically role players that can contribute during our window

[bigfoot_cryptozoology]

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5595111/2024/06/27/nba-draft-grades-analysis-2024-vecenie-hollinger/

54. Boston Celtics
Anton Watson | 6-8 wing | 23 years old | Gonzaga

Vecenie’s ranking: 64

Anton Watson is one of my sneaky favorites in this class, and I have a two-way grade on him. I think he can defend within an NBA scheme right away and has potential to add a lot of value on that end of the court if his offense improves enough to keep him on the floor. He’s switchable and long, plus has great strength and good hip flexibility to stay on-balance in space. His help defense is sharp, and he is a good scramble defender. Offensively, I don’t love his skill package, even if he maintains his ability to cut and finish around the rim. Shooting is the key for me. There are some signs of Watson becoming a capable shooter, as he made 41 percent on limited attempts this year. But it’s hard to buy into his jumper becoming a consistent NBA weapon given that he turns 24 this year and has always been a lowvolume attempter. If he can improve his shooting to the point where he consistently hits corner 3s, his defense may be valuable enough to stick in the NBA. That will take some time for his jumper to come around. Still, I’d be willing to bet a two-way deal on expediting that process, because if it does, Watson has some value in the NBA.

Hollinger’s analysis: I didn’t expect Watson to get drafted, but this is a defensible late pick because he’s a good defender who can play the four. Watson could potentially soak up some of the minutes filled by Oshae Brissett this season, as the latter opted out of his deal for the coming season to become a free agent.

[Hal14]

Guessing he is a 2-way contract guy, but maybe not at 24 already. He a ball of energy, gets after it on the boards, very solid passing for a 4, and very quick hands (saw a quote from John Stockton that MIGHT be a bit over the top) for steals and deflections. Wanted a longer and perhaps more dynamic prospect, but, I like the fit as a reserve 4.

Yeah, I'm guessing he will be on a 2-way. However, depending on how he develops and how the rest of the roster shakes out, injuries, how the season is going, how much we have a need for his services, I could see him potentially getting converted later on in the season..

He's more of a 4 but with a 7'0" wingspan and being a rugged built guy (6'8.5", 233 lbs) he could probably play small ball 5 as well..

[BK_2020]

I'm hoping he pans out but sure does sound like we picked up the Next Thanasis.

[phincsfan]

Watson's definitely one of the bigger bodies at 230ish

[threrf23]

Physically I believe he is similar to Lamar Stevens? From what I know of Watson, Lamar Stevens comes to mind as a comp based on his size, strength, and defensive activity. Both have a similar tweener profile, both are/were active but limited defenders known for their high motor, both have struggled shooting from long range.

Watson is known as a switchable defender but he struggled with a bit with foul efficiency throughout his career in the WCC, not only will that likely be a bigger issue in the NBA, but it speaks to a limited ceiling on the defensive side. I suspect he is maybe best utilized as a small ball C. On the plus side, he is known to be a smart and efficient player on offense, and he shows some hope of developing a three point shot. That is in theory where he sets himself apart from Lamar Stevens, who came up as a not so efficient interior scorer.

In any event, I like that we drafted two high iq, high fundamental types.

[Hal14]

Yeah. I'd feel better if these Guys were 19 when they come in, instead of 24.
Give them some time to develop at the NBA level. Starting at 24 though, IDK.

Scheirman and Watson right now are 23 yrs old.

Age when they were drafted:

Derrick white - 23
Fred VanVleet - 22
Austin Reaves - 23
Herb Jones - 22
Alex Caruso - 22
Sam Hauser - 23
Kenrich Williams - 23
Malcolm Brogdon - 23
Caleb Martin - 23
Jaime Jaquez - 22
Max Strus - 23
Payton Pritchard - 22
Duncan Robinson - 24
Cam Johnson - 22
Pascal Siakam - 22
Andrew Nembhard - 22
Buddy Hield - 23

A lot of the super young guys we have tried to draft haven't worked out so well (Madar, Begarin, Langford, Walsh, Davison, etc.)

Read on Twitter

They'll both be 24, when the Season begins.

Ok?

That still doesn't change the fact that they're both 23 right now. The ages I listed in my post are age when each player was drafted..so it's an apples to apples comparison..rather than looking at age on draft night for a list of 20 guys but then moving the goalposts and using age when the season starts 4 months from now for only 2 of the guys which would be comparing apples to oranges.

Scheierman and Watson are basically same age as Hauser was when he was drafted - and Buddy Hield. They're both younger than Duncan Robinson was when he was drafted.

[Hal14]

Physically I believe he is similar to Lamar Stevens?

Kind of. But Watson is bigger.

Watson is 6'8" with 7'0" wingspan. Lamar Stevens is 6'6" with a 6'9" wingspan.

Watson is closer physically to Xavier Tillman..or perhaps Kyle Anderson..

Watson is slightly bigger than Lamar Stevens and Grant Williams..slightly smaller than Horford.

[Parliament10]

Scheirman and Watson right now are 23 yrs old.

Age when they were drafted:

Derrick white - 23
Fred VanVleet - 22
Austin Reaves - 23
Herb Jones - 22
Alex Caruso - 22
Sam Hauser - 23
Kenrich Williams - 23
Malcolm Brogdon - 23
Caleb Martin - 23
Jaime Jaquez - 22
Max Strus - 23
Payton Pritchard - 22
Duncan Robinson - 24
Cam Johnson - 22
Pascal Siakam - 22
Andrew Nembhard - 22
Buddy Hield - 23

A lot of the super young guys we have tried to draft haven't worked out so well (Madar, Begarin, Langford, Walsh, Davison, etc.)

Read on Twitter

They'll both be 24, when the Season begins.

Ok?

That still doesn't change the fact that they're both 23 right now. The ages I listed in my post are age when each player was drafted..so it's an apples to apples comparison..rather than looking at age on draft night for a list of 20 guys but then moving the goalposts and using age when the season starts 4 months from now for only 2 of the guys which would be comparing apples to oranges.

Scheierman and Watson are basically same age as Hauser was when he was drafted - and Buddy Hield. They're both younger than Duncan Robinson was when he was drafted.

That's nice.

Your list doesn't have anything to do with my original post that they will Start the Season at 24.
They're 5 years older than the minimum age, is my point.

[Half-Full]

I like it - Celtics need a player in this mold, he's a little boring but fits where the modern game is going.

Yeah, nothing spectacular, but solid. Not a good scorer, but decent. The other aspects of his game are better: passing, defense, rebounding, the intangibles. Five years playing for Gonzaga, improving every year, is nothing to be sneezed at. I'm happy with this pick. Let's hope it proves to be a winner.

[ConstableGeneva]

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