Austin Ainge: Celtics Draft was about keeping flexibility, not taking best player, so Celts could hold out for home run

[Higgs Boston]

Hey, hey, we, danny and I, aren't incompetents in the draft, we only select random players and keeping flexibility!

[jrob23]

can someone explain why the draft was about keeping flexibility?

How does a top 3 pick change due to flexibility options?

The whole point of the article seems to be that Boston's #1 need after the loss to the Hawks was perimeter shooting and they did not address this need through the draft (or Free Agency).

Jalen himself improves the team's flexibility because as a young player he is able to defend 3 maybe 4 positions and is physically ready for the NBA. From a skill set, attitude and approach he fits the mold of the type of player the C's are looking for. This is likely in comparison to Chriss and Jamal Murray who would likely be a few years away from competing on Boston's current roster.

There just wasn't a front line star available for the 3 pick and Ainge wasn't interested in Okafor or other options at the price being asked.

There was nothing in this article about Boston taking lesser players over better players. They wanted to maintain two max FA slots which I think everyone agrees was a good idea. Using the the two first rounders on draft and stash guys is the way to go. While you can quibble about who you think might be a better prospect @ 16 or 23 if you factor in that having that prospect will have to be on your roster and perhaps impact your options in FA and the trade market and you have no room for development guys who should he have taken?

There seems to be this consensus that people are pissed with Ainge for not trading for a star that wasn't available at the draft in Butler or trading up for a player he may or may not have had the assets to do and likely didn't want in Chriss.

Would I have drafted Deyonta Davis at 16 or 23 yup but the rest of the league agreed with Ainge and passed until Ainge picked him at 31 and traded him for a future first. My guess is there is a reason.

If you can get away from the emotions of the individual picks being made and what you think he should have done and what the mock drafts said and look at what he came away with I think Ainge did very well. He went in with 8 picks limited roster spots and trying to preserve max cap space and was able to get his BPA at 3, essentially extend his roster with 16 and 23, roll over 31 and 35 for a future first, and picked up to interesting players later in the 2nd round. We all hated the Terry Rozier pick at this time last year and now some think he is untradeable.

Murray would have been a day 1 starter. He's got ideal size and a great deep ball. He is exactly what we needed.

Me (I wasn't on this board) and many others didn't mind the Rozier pick and still don't. Very shallow and weak draft and he's good enough to be a fringe starter or contributing role player.

Why are draft and stashes so important? How would that affect flexibility? They could have taken other better players and just dropped the scrubs on the fringe (Young, Mickey, Hunter, Jerebko, Zeller) if necessary. There were upgrades over all of them available and ready to contribute immediately.

I didn't want the "consensus" of either trading #3 or trading up for Criss. The draft class was so deep they could have walked away with 5 very good role players/potential future starters and STILL traded those picks for a future 1st rounder. Instead, they'll get contributions from Brown and that's it. Horrible use of 8 picks.

Let's face it. He didn't draft better players because that would have meant admitting he screwed up the last few drafts and would have had to drop them in order to make room. It's all ego. Nothing he did during the draft would affect being able to go for a home run FA. Too many apologists for a very poor drafter who has proven so year after year.

Bentl, Jackson, and Nader are just bodies. I wouldn't even say they are ever going to be integral role players either. Maybe Nader. But again, they are potentially losing him because Danny doesn't want to drop the scrubs he drafted previous seasons. Nader would be a great SF scoring option off the bench (could move Brown to SG) in certain lineups.

[Chris4Vikes]

can someone explain why the draft was about keeping flexibility?

How does a top 3 pick change due to flexibility options?

The whole point of the article seems to be that Boston's #1 need after the loss to the Hawks was perimeter shooting and they did not address this need through the draft (or Free Agency).

Jalen himself improves the team's flexibility because as a young player he is able to defend 3 maybe 4 positions and is physically ready for the NBA. From a skill set, attitude and approach he fits the mold of the type of player the C's are looking for. This is likely in comparison to Chriss and Jamal Murray who would likely be a few years away from competing on Boston's current roster.

There just wasn't a front line star available for the 3 pick and Ainge wasn't interested in Okafor or other options at the price being asked.

There was nothing in this article about Boston taking lesser players over better players. They wanted to maintain two max FA slots which I think everyone agrees was a good idea. Using the the two first rounders on draft and stash guys is the way to go. While you can quibble about who you think might be a better prospect @ 16 or 23 if you factor in that having that prospect will have to be on your roster and perhaps impact your options in FA and the trade market and you have no room for development guys who should he have taken?

There seems to be this consensus that people are pissed with Ainge for not trading for a star that wasn't available at the draft in Butler or trading up for a player he may or may not have had the assets to do and likely didn't want in Chriss.

Would I have drafted Deyonta Davis at 16 or 23 yup but the rest of the league agreed with Ainge and passed until Ainge picked him at 31 and traded him for a future first. My guess is there is a reason.

If you can get away from the emotions of the individual picks being made and what you think he should have done and what the mock drafts said and look at what he came away with I think Ainge did very well. He went in with 8 picks limited roster spots and trying to preserve max cap space and was able to get his BPA at 3, essentially extend his roster with 16 and 23, roll over 31 and 35 for a future first, and picked up to interesting players later in the 2nd round. We all hated the Terry Rozier pick at this time last year and now some think he is untradeable.

Murray would have been a day 1 starter. He's got ideal size and a great deep ball. He is exactly what we needed.

Me (I wasn't on this board) and many others didn't mind the Rozier pick and still don't. Very shallow and weak draft and he's good enough to be a fringe starter or contributing role player.

Why are draft and stashes so important? How would that affect flexibility? They could have taken other better players and just dropped the scrubs on the fringe (Young, Mickey, Hunter, Jerebko, Zeller) if necessary. There were upgrades over all of them available and ready to contribute immediately.

I didn't want the "consensus" of either trading #3 or trading up for Criss. The draft class was so deep they could have walked away with 5 very good role players/potential future starters and STILL traded those picks for a future 1st rounder. Instead, they'll get contributions from Brown and that's it. Horrible use of 8 picks.

Let's face it. He didn't draft better players because that would have meant admitting he screwed up the last few drafts and would have had to drop them in order to make room. It's all ego. Nothing he did during the draft would affect being able to go for a home run FA. Too many apologists for a very poor drafter who has proven so year after year.

Bentl, Jackson, and Nader are just bodies. I wouldn't even say they are ever going to be integral role players either. Maybe Nader. But again, they are potentially losing him because Danny doesn't want to drop the scrubs he drafted previous seasons. Nader would be a great SF scoring option off the bench (could move Brown to SG) in certain lineups.

I am still mad about the Yabu pick. Everything else arguably made sense. Too many good players still on the board at 16 to not take one and make room. We made room for the 45th pick, but we couldn't for the 16th pick? Amazing.

No disrespect to Yabu. I like him but not at 16.

[robbie84]

can someone explain why the draft was about keeping flexibility?

How does a top 3 pick change due to flexibility options?

The whole point of the article seems to be that Boston's #1 need after the loss to the Hawks was perimeter shooting and they did not address this need through the draft (or Free Agency).

Jalen himself improves the team's flexibility because as a young player he is able to defend 3 maybe 4 positions and is physically ready for the NBA. From a skill set, attitude and approach he fits the mold of the type of player the C's are looking for. This is likely in comparison to Chriss and Jamal Murray who would likely be a few years away from competing on Boston's current roster.

There just wasn't a front line star available for the 3 pick and Ainge wasn't interested in Okafor or other options at the price being asked.

There was nothing in this article about Boston taking lesser players over better players. They wanted to maintain two max FA slots which I think everyone agrees was a good idea. Using the the two first rounders on draft and stash guys is the way to go. While you can quibble about who you think might be a better prospect @ 16 or 23 if you factor in that having that prospect will have to be on your roster and perhaps impact your options in FA and the trade market and you have no room for development guys who should he have taken?

There seems to be this consensus that people are pissed with Ainge for not trading for a star that wasn't available at the draft in Butler or trading up for a player he may or may not have had the assets to do and likely didn't want in Chriss.

Would I have drafted Deyonta Davis at 16 or 23 yup but the rest of the league agreed with Ainge and passed until Ainge picked him at 31 and traded him for a future first. My guess is there is a reason.

If you can get away from the emotions of the individual picks being made and what you think he should have done and what the mock drafts said and look at what he came away with I think Ainge did very well. He went in with 8 picks limited roster spots and trying to preserve max cap space and was able to get his BPA at 3, essentially extend his roster with 16 and 23, roll over 31 and 35 for a future first, and picked up to interesting players later in the 2nd round. We all hated the Terry Rozier pick at this time last year and now some think he is untradeable.

Murray would have been a day 1 starter. He's got ideal size and a great deep ball. He is exactly what we needed.

Me (I wasn't on this board) and many others didn't mind the Rozier pick and still don't. Very shallow and weak draft and he's good enough to be a fringe starter or contributing role player.

Why are draft and stashes so important? How would that affect flexibility? They could have taken other better players and just dropped the scrubs on the fringe (Young, Mickey, Hunter, Jerebko, Zeller) if necessary. There were upgrades over all of them available and ready to contribute immediately.

I didn't want the "consensus" of either trading #3 or trading up for Criss. The draft class was so deep they could have walked away with 5 very good role players/potential future starters and STILL traded those picks for a future 1st rounder. Instead, they'll get contributions from Brown and that's it. Horrible use of 8 picks.

Let's face it. He didn't draft better players because that would have meant admitting he screwed up the last few drafts and would have had to drop them in order to make room. It's all ego. Nothing he did during the draft would affect being able to go for a home run FA. Too many apologists for a very poor drafter who has proven so year after year.

Bentl, Jackson, and Nader are just bodies. I wouldn't even say they are ever going to be integral role players either. Maybe Nader. But again, they are potentially losing him because Danny doesn't want to drop the scrubs he drafted previous seasons. Nader would be a great SF scoring option off the bench (could move Brown to SG) in certain lineups.

I would have to argue that Danny Ainge would not have the slightest problem in dumping guys he picked to replace them with better prospects. He's allowed the misses in the middle/late first round because he's had so many absolute gems like Jefferson, Delonte, Allen, Rondo...etc.

He's allowed to whiff when you're picking out the top 10. The fact is that there isn't a single GM in the NBA who's getting more hits in the middle first round over such a long time period. When you combine his forward thinking vision for undervalued players like Isaiah Thomas or Crowder whilst acquiring them for incredibly good value, THEN moves like re-signing Crowder at a figure of about half his actual market rate- you're ignoring the reality of his brilliance in the skill of recognizing legitimate NBA player potential.

[sully00]

can someone explain why the draft was about keeping flexibility?

How does a top 3 pick change due to flexibility options?

The whole point of the article seems to be that Boston's #1 need after the loss to the Hawks was perimeter shooting and they did not address this need through the draft (or Free Agency).

Jalen himself improves the team's flexibility because as a young player he is able to defend 3 maybe 4 positions and is physically ready for the NBA. From a skill set, attitude and approach he fits the mold of the type of player the C's are looking for. This is likely in comparison to Chriss and Jamal Murray who would likely be a few years away from competing on Boston's current roster.

There just wasn't a front line star available for the 3 pick and Ainge wasn't interested in Okafor or other options at the price being asked.

There was nothing in this article about Boston taking lesser players over better players. They wanted to maintain two max FA slots which I think everyone agrees was a good idea. Using the the two first rounders on draft and stash guys is the way to go. While you can quibble about who you think might be a better prospect @ 16 or 23 if you factor in that having that prospect will have to be on your roster and perhaps impact your options in FA and the trade market and you have no room for development guys who should he have taken?

There seems to be this consensus that people are pissed with Ainge for not trading for a star that wasn't available at the draft in Butler or trading up for a player he may or may not have had the assets to do and likely didn't want in Chriss.

Would I have drafted Deyonta Davis at 16 or 23 yup but the rest of the league agreed with Ainge and passed until Ainge picked him at 31 and traded him for a future first. My guess is there is a reason.

If you can get away from the emotions of the individual picks being made and what you think he should have done and what the mock drafts said and look at what he came away with I think Ainge did very well. He went in with 8 picks limited roster spots and trying to preserve max cap space and was able to get his BPA at 3, essentially extend his roster with 16 and 23, roll over 31 and 35 for a future first, and picked up to interesting players later in the 2nd round. We all hated the Terry Rozier pick at this time last year and now some think he is untradeable.

Murray would have been a day 1 starter. He's got ideal size and a great deep ball. He is exactly what we needed.

Me (I wasn't on this board) and many others didn't mind the Rozier pick and still don't. Very shallow and weak draft and he's good enough to be a fringe starter or contributing role player.

Why are draft and stashes so important? How would that affect flexibility? They could have taken other better players and just dropped the scrubs on the fringe (Young, Mickey, Hunter, Jerebko, Zeller) if necessary. There were upgrades over all of them available and ready to contribute immediately.

I didn't want the "consensus" of either trading #3 or trading up for Criss. The draft class was so deep they could have walked away with 5 very good role players/potential future starters and STILL traded those picks for a future 1st rounder. Instead, they'll get contributions from Brown and that's it. Horrible use of 8 picks.

Let's face it. He didn't draft better players because that would have meant admitting he screwed up the last few drafts and would have had to drop them in order to make room. It's all ego. Nothing he did during the draft would affect being able to go for a home run FA. Too many apologists for a very poor drafter who has proven so year after year.

Bentl, Jackson, and Nader are just bodies. I wouldn't even say they are ever going to be integral role players either. Maybe Nader. But again, they are potentially losing him because Danny doesn't want to drop the scrubs he drafted previous seasons. Nader would be a great SF scoring option off the bench (could move Brown to SG) in certain lineups.

Murray is not an NBA caliber defensive player and plays the same position as Bradley and Smart who are.

The team has too many guaranteed contracts this season and trying to attract FA's. Now if you could have added NBA ready players at 16 and 23 then sure you can start to eat some guaranteed money on guys like Hunter and Young but your probably doing to do that anyhow. There was no one available that made Mickey or Jerebko expendable this season. Your just vastly overrating the talent and skill level in the second half of this draft. If it was as good as you think it is why didn't anyone to swap a future first for a Boston's picks?

I think Ainge did walk away with a handful of good NBA role players your just going to have to wait a year or two for Yabu and Zizic to come to the NBA. I think Jackson and Betil are NBA players you taking a flyer at #58 no matter who you pick.

[jmr07019]

I've seen various posters and articles say we haven't addressed shooting. We will be a better shooting team this coming team than we were last year. Will we be a top 10 3 point shooting team? Probably not. I don't think we'll be bottom 10 again though.

We are replacing:

Evan Turner 1.0 3-point attempt per game at 24.1%
Jared Sullinger 1.3 3-point attempt per game at 28.2%

with:

Al Horford 3.1 3-point attempts per game at 34.4%
Jaylen Brown ??????? hopefully can convert at a minimum of 30% rate

We are also going to replace Sully's long 2's (he made 40% of them) with Horford 3's. We will be a better 3 point shooting team. Not going to be GSW but we will certainly be better.

If Smart can be bad instead of sucking at historic levels we will be that much better too!

[Homerclease]

The whole point of the article seems to be that Boston's #1 need after the loss to the Hawks was perimeter shooting and they did not address this need through the draft (or Free Agency).

Jalen himself improves the team's flexibility because as a young player he is able to defend 3 maybe 4 positions and is physically ready for the NBA. From a skill set, attitude and approach he fits the mold of the type of player the C's are looking for. This is likely in comparison to Chriss and Jamal Murray who would likely be a few years away from competing on Boston's current roster.

There just wasn't a front line star available for the 3 pick and Ainge wasn't interested in Okafor or other options at the price being asked.

There was nothing in this article about Boston taking lesser players over better players. They wanted to maintain two max FA slots which I think everyone agrees was a good idea. Using the the two first rounders on draft and stash guys is the way to go. While you can quibble about who you think might be a better prospect @ 16 or 23 if you factor in that having that prospect will have to be on your roster and perhaps impact your options in FA and the trade market and you have no room for development guys who should he have taken?

There seems to be this consensus that people are pissed with Ainge for not trading for a star that wasn't available at the draft in Butler or trading up for a player he may or may not have had the assets to do and likely didn't want in Chriss.

Would I have drafted Deyonta Davis at 16 or 23 yup but the rest of the league agreed with Ainge and passed until Ainge picked him at 31 and traded him for a future first. My guess is there is a reason.

If you can get away from the emotions of the individual picks being made and what you think he should have done and what the mock drafts said and look at what he came away with I think Ainge did very well. He went in with 8 picks limited roster spots and trying to preserve max cap space and was able to get his BPA at 3, essentially extend his roster with 16 and 23, roll over 31 and 35 for a future first, and picked up to interesting players later in the 2nd round. We all hated the Terry Rozier pick at this time last year and now some think he is untradeable.

Murray would have been a day 1 starter. He's got ideal size and a great deep ball. He is exactly what we needed.

Me (I wasn't on this board) and many others didn't mind the Rozier pick and still don't. Very shallow and weak draft and he's good enough to be a fringe starter or contributing role player.

Why are draft and stashes so important? How would that affect flexibility? They could have taken other better players and just dropped the scrubs on the fringe (Young, Mickey, Hunter, Jerebko, Zeller) if necessary. There were upgrades over all of them available and ready to contribute immediately.

I didn't want the "consensus" of either trading #3 or trading up for Criss. The draft class was so deep they could have walked away with 5 very good role players/potential future starters and STILL traded those picks for a future 1st rounder. Instead, they'll get contributions from Brown and that's it. Horrible use of 8 picks.

Let's face it. He didn't draft better players because that would have meant admitting he screwed up the last few drafts and would have had to drop them in order to make room. It's all ego. Nothing he did during the draft would affect being able to go for a home run FA. Too many apologists for a very poor drafter who has proven so year after year.

Bentl, Jackson, and Nader are just bodies. I wouldn't even say they are ever going to be integral role players either. Maybe Nader. But again, they are potentially losing him because Danny doesn't want to drop the scrubs he drafted previous seasons. Nader would be a great SF scoring option off the bench (could move Brown to SG) in certain lineups.

Murray is not an NBA caliber defensive player and plays the same position as Bradley and Smart who are.

The team has too many guaranteed contracts this season and trying to attract FA's. Now if you could have added NBA ready players at 16 and 23 then sure you can start to eat some guaranteed money on guys like Hunter and Young but your probably doing to do that anyhow. There was no one available that made Mickey or Jerebko expendable this season. Your just vastly overrating the talent and skill level in the second half of this draft. If it was as good as you think it is why didn't anyone to swap a future first for a Boston's picks?

I think Ainge did walk away with a handful of good NBA role players your just going to have to wait a year or two for Yabu and Zizic to come to the NBA. I think Jackson and Betil are NBA players you taking a flyer at #58 no matter who you pick.

They filled out the end of their roster with Gerald Green and Tyler Zeller. The roster space arguement just doesn't fly man. All their eggs were in the KD basket for better or in this case, for worse. They took lesser players on their board and traded picks to maintain roster flexibility for Durant and it blew up in their face

[sully00]

Murray would have been a day 1 starter. He's got ideal size and a great deep ball. He is exactly what we needed.

Me (I wasn't on this board) and many others didn't mind the Rozier pick and still don't. Very shallow and weak draft and he's good enough to be a fringe starter or contributing role player.

Why are draft and stashes so important? How would that affect flexibility? They could have taken other better players and just dropped the scrubs on the fringe (Young, Mickey, Hunter, Jerebko, Zeller) if necessary. There were upgrades over all of them available and ready to contribute immediately.

I didn't want the "consensus" of either trading #3 or trading up for Criss. The draft class was so deep they could have walked away with 5 very good role players/potential future starters and STILL traded those picks for a future 1st rounder. Instead, they'll get contributions from Brown and that's it. Horrible use of 8 picks.

Let's face it. He didn't draft better players because that would have meant admitting he screwed up the last few drafts and would have had to drop them in order to make room. It's all ego. Nothing he did during the draft would affect being able to go for a home run FA. Too many apologists for a very poor drafter who has proven so year after year.

Bentl, Jackson, and Nader are just bodies. I wouldn't even say they are ever going to be integral role players either. Maybe Nader. But again, they are potentially losing him because Danny doesn't want to drop the scrubs he drafted previous seasons. Nader would be a great SF scoring option off the bench (could move Brown to SG) in certain lineups.

Murray is not an NBA caliber defensive player and plays the same position as Bradley and Smart who are.

The team has too many guaranteed contracts this season and trying to attract FA's. Now if you could have added NBA ready players at 16 and 23 then sure you can start to eat some guaranteed money on guys like Hunter and Young but your probably doing to do that anyhow. There was no one available that made Mickey or Jerebko expendable this season. Your just vastly overrating the talent and skill level in the second half of this draft. If it was as good as you think it is why didn't anyone to swap a future first for a Boston's picks?

I think Ainge did walk away with a handful of good NBA role players your just going to have to wait a year or two for Yabu and Zizic to come to the NBA. I think Jackson and Betil are NBA players you taking a flyer at #58 no matter who you pick.

They filled out the end of their roster with Gerald Green and Tyler Zeller. The roster space arguement just doesn't fly man. All their eggs were in the KD basket for better or in this case, for worse. They took lesser players on their board and traded picks to maintain roster flexibility for Durant and it blew up in their face

Sorry you are so wrong about this. Gerald Green and Tyler Zeller can play in the NBA. The Celtics are trying to win games and be relevant to FA's. Obviously someone will surprise people like they do every year but who can you project effectively playing more mins in the NBA next than Green or Zeller taken after 15 in the draft?

Zeller put up a PER of 15.4, Green had a down year in Miami with only a 10 was over 16 and 15 the last two years and is over 13 for his career. Conversely Justise Winslow, who Ainge was willing to spend as many as 4 first rounders on last year put up an 8.

The irony is that Ainge probably drafted 4 of the most ready to contribute players in the back half of the first and second rounds they just aren't coming over this year. Yabu and Zizic can play a mans game already, and the same goes for Bentil and Jackson whether or not they are good enough is in question but these are guys who know how to play.

I would love to hear who these impact guys Ainge past on are.

[Leprechaun18]

Murray is not an NBA caliber defensive player and plays the same position as Bradley and Smart who are.

The team has too many guaranteed contracts this season and trying to attract FA's. Now if you could have added NBA ready players at 16 and 23 then sure you can start to eat some guaranteed money on guys like Hunter and Young but your probably doing to do that anyhow. There was no one available that made Mickey or Jerebko expendable this season. Your just vastly overrating the talent and skill level in the second half of this draft. If it was as good as you think it is why didn't anyone to swap a future first for a Boston's picks?

I think Ainge did walk away with a handful of good NBA role players your just going to have to wait a year or two for Yabu and Zizic to come to the NBA. I think Jackson and Betil are NBA players you taking a flyer at #58 no matter who you pick.

They filled out the end of their roster with Gerald Green and Tyler Zeller. The roster space arguement just doesn't fly man. All their eggs were in the KD basket for better or in this case, for worse. They took lesser players on their board and traded picks to maintain roster flexibility for Durant and it blew up in their face

Sorry you are so wrong about this. Gerald Green and Tyler Zeller can play in the NBA. The Celtics are trying to win games and be relevant to FA's. Obviously someone will surprise people like they do every year but who can you project effectively playing more mins in the NBA next than Green or Zeller taken after 15 in the draft?

Zeller put up a PER of 15.4, Green had a down year in Miami with only a 10 was over 16 and 15 the last two years and is over 13 for his career. Conversely Justise Winslow, who Ainge was willing to spend as many as 4 first rounders on last year put up an 8.

The irony is that Ainge probably drafted 4 of the most ready to contribute players in the back half of the first and second rounds they just aren't coming over this year. Yabu and Zizic can play a mans game already, and the same goes for Bentil and Jackson whether or not they are good enough is in question but these are guys who know how to play.

I would love to hear who these impact guys Ainge past on are.

I strongly disagree with your post. There will be some future all stars drafted in the later part of this years draft. D.Murray, McCaw and the 31st pick of the draft. Zeller is just a waste of money. He didnt play much. Why didnt other teams sign Green?
Danny should have attempted to combine some picks and move up to get two lottery picks, but its clear that he didnt attempt to do that. He blew a mid 1st round pick on a player he could have gotten in the 2nd round. People who want to give him a pass, and proclaim him an excellent drafter for this are deluded.

[sully00]

They filled out the end of their roster with Gerald Green and Tyler Zeller. The roster space arguement just doesn't fly man. All their eggs were in the KD basket for better or in this case, for worse. They took lesser players on their board and traded picks to maintain roster flexibility for Durant and it blew up in their face

Sorry you are so wrong about this. Gerald Green and Tyler Zeller can play in the NBA. The Celtics are trying to win games and be relevant to FA's. Obviously someone will surprise people like they do every year but who can you project effectively playing more mins in the NBA next than Green or Zeller taken after 15 in the draft?

Zeller put up a PER of 15.4, Green had a down year in Miami with only a 10 was over 16 and 15 the last two years and is over 13 for his career. Conversely Justise Winslow, who Ainge was willing to spend as many as 4 first rounders on last year put up an 8.

The irony is that Ainge probably drafted 4 of the most ready to contribute players in the back half of the first and second rounds they just aren't coming over this year. Yabu and Zizic can play a mans game already, and the same goes for Bentil and Jackson whether or not they are good enough is in question but these are guys who know how to play.

I would love to hear who these impact guys Ainge past on are.

I strongly disagree with your post. There will be some future all stars drafted in the later part of this years draft. D.Murray, McCaw and the 31st pick of the draft. Zeller is just a waste of money. He didnt play much. Why didnt other teams sign Green?
Danny should have attempted to combine some picks and move up to get two lottery picks, but its clear that he didnt attempt to do that. He blew a mid 1st round pick on a player he could have gotten in the 2nd round. People who want to give him a pass, and proclaim him an excellent drafter for this are deluded.

Ainge's drafting will be judged on Jaylen Brown. I think your assertion that there are future all stars, plural, that were taken later in this draft is suspect. Now I think Dejounte Murray is an interesting player but he can't play in the NBA right now Demetrius

The reality is you may be right there might be a 19 year old that was drafted that may end up being a good player 3 or 4 years from now but wouldn't make Boston's 15 man roster right now. Hassan Whiteside, DeMarre Carroll and Danny Green are good NBA players who make a lot of money it doesn't mean they were good draft picks because they weren't.

I don't understand why people can't see the difference between developmental players and guys who can play. You can have 3 or 4 guys on your roster who are developing their games and not really ready to play in the league you can't have 8. Boston is looking at having 8 and people are mad they didn't add two more.

[Homerclease]

Murray is not an NBA caliber defensive player and plays the same position as Bradley and Smart who are.

The team has too many guaranteed contracts this season and trying to attract FA's. Now if you could have added NBA ready players at 16 and 23 then sure you can start to eat some guaranteed money on guys like Hunter and Young but your probably doing to do that anyhow. There was no one available that made Mickey or Jerebko expendable this season. Your just vastly overrating the talent and skill level in the second half of this draft. If it was as good as you think it is why didn't anyone to swap a future first for a Boston's picks?

I think Ainge did walk away with a handful of good NBA role players your just going to have to wait a year or two for Yabu and Zizic to come to the NBA. I think Jackson and Betil are NBA players you taking a flyer at #58 no matter who you pick.

They filled out the end of their roster with Gerald Green and Tyler Zeller. The roster space arguement just doesn't fly man. All their eggs were in the KD basket for better or in this case, for worse. They took lesser players on their board and traded picks to maintain roster flexibility for Durant and it blew up in their face

Sorry you are so wrong about this. Gerald Green and Tyler Zeller can play in the NBA. The Celtics are trying to win games and be relevant to FA's. Obviously someone will surprise people like they do every year but who can you project effectively playing more mins in the NBA next than Green or Zeller taken after 15 in the draft?

Zeller put up a PER of 15.4, Green had a down year in Miami with only a 10 was over 16 and 15 the last two years and is over 13 for his career. Conversely Justise Winslow, who Ainge was willing to spend as many as 4 first rounders on last year put up an 8.

The irony is that Ainge probably drafted 4 of the most ready to contribute players in the back half of the first and second rounds they just aren't coming over this year. Yabu and Zizic can play a mans game already, and the same goes for Bentil and Jackson whether or not they are good enough is in question but these are guys who know how to play.

I would love to hear who these impact guys Ainge past on are.

If Green and Zeller see the court this year it's because someone got hurt. Pure and simple they don't and shouldn't factor into any present and future plans here. Of course the Celtics are trying to win games to attract free agents and I understand they need veteran depth in case of injury but the point I, and others are making is they did a piss poor job maximizing their assets after pick 3 by putting all their eggs in the Durant basket. There was no plan B at all. None.

[Leprechaun18]

The whole point of the article seems to be that Boston's #1 need after the loss to the Hawks was perimeter shooting and they did not address this need through the draft (or Free Agency).

Jalen himself improves the team's flexibility because as a young player he is able to defend 3 maybe 4 positions and is physically ready for the NBA. From a skill set, attitude and approach he fits the mold of the type of player the C's are looking for. This is likely in comparison to Chriss and Jamal Murray who would likely be a few years away from competing on Boston's current roster.

There just wasn't a front line star available for the 3 pick and Ainge wasn't interested in Okafor or other options at the price being asked.

There was nothing in this article about Boston taking lesser players over better players. They wanted to maintain two max FA slots which I think everyone agrees was a good idea. Using the the two first rounders on draft and stash guys is the way to go. While you can quibble about who you think might be a better prospect @ 16 or 23 if you factor in that having that prospect will have to be on your roster and perhaps impact your options in FA and the trade market and you have no room for development guys who should he have taken?

There seems to be this consensus that people are pissed with Ainge for not trading for a star that wasn't available at the draft in Butler or trading up for a player he may or may not have had the assets to do and likely didn't want in Chriss.

Would I have drafted Deyonta Davis at 16 or 23 yup but the rest of the league agreed with Ainge and passed until Ainge picked him at 31 and traded him for a future first. My guess is there is a reason.

If you can get away from the emotions of the individual picks being made and what you think he should have done and what the mock drafts said and look at what he came away with I think Ainge did very well. He went in with 8 picks limited roster spots and trying to preserve max cap space and was able to get his BPA at 3, essentially extend his roster with 16 and 23, roll over 31 and 35 for a future first, and picked up to interesting players later in the 2nd round. We all hated the Terry Rozier pick at this time last year and now some think he is untradeable.

Murray would have been a day 1 starter. He's got ideal size and a great deep ball. He is exactly what we needed.

Me (I wasn't on this board) and many others didn't mind the Rozier pick and still don't. Very shallow and weak draft and he's good enough to be a fringe starter or contributing role player.

Why are draft and stashes so important? How would that affect flexibility? They could have taken other better players and just dropped the scrubs on the fringe (Young, Mickey, Hunter, Jerebko, Zeller) if necessary. There were upgrades over all of them available and ready to contribute immediately.

I didn't want the "consensus" of either trading #3 or trading up for Criss. The draft class was so deep they could have walked away with 5 very good role players/potential future starters and STILL traded those picks for a future 1st rounder. Instead, they'll get contributions from Brown and that's it. Horrible use of 8 picks.

Let's face it. He didn't draft better players because that would have meant admitting he screwed up the last few drafts and would have had to drop them in order to make room. It's all ego. Nothing he did during the draft would affect being able to go for a home run FA. Too many apologists for a very poor drafter who has proven so year after year.

Bentl, Jackson, and Nader are just bodies. I wouldn't even say they are ever going to be integral role players either. Maybe Nader. But again, they are potentially losing him because Danny doesn't want to drop the scrubs he drafted previous seasons. Nader would be a great SF scoring option off the bench (could move Brown to SG) in certain lineups.

Murray is not an NBA caliber defensive player and plays the same position as Bradley and Smart who are.

The team has too many guaranteed contracts this season and trying to attract FA's. Now if you could have added NBA ready players at 16 and 23 then sure you can start to eat some guaranteed money on guys like Hunter and Young but your probably doing to do that anyhow. There was no one available that made Mickey or Jerebko expendable this season. Your just vastly overrating the talent and skill level in the second half of this draft. If it was as good as you think it is why didn't anyone to swap a future first for a Boston's picks?

I think Ainge did walk away with a handful of good NBA role players your just going to have to wait a year or two for Yabu and Zizic to come to the NBA. I think Jackson and Betil are NBA players you taking a flyer at #58 no matter who you pick.

I dont think Yabu can defend in the NBA. IMO Danny Ainge messed up when he didnt try to combine the 16 and 23 picks with some good second rounders to move up to get another lottery pick. Then the draft wouldnt be about just Jaylen Brown.

[sully00]

I dont think Yabu can defend in the NBA. IMO Danny Ainge messed up when he didnt try to combine the 16 and 23 picks with some good second rounders to move up to get another lottery pick. Then the draft wouldnt be about just Jaylen Brown.

I don't know how you can make any conclusions on Yabu at this point it just has to play out, it is a gamble but unless you watch a lot of French Basketball I am not sure you can really conclude anything on him yet he is only 20.

What makes you think that trade was there to be made? It took Bagdonovic and #28 and a second to get from 13 to 8.

Beyond the ability to even make the trade who is the player your trading up for? Who is the guy between 16 and 8 you are trading up for?

[Homerclease]

I dont think Yabu can defend in the NBA. IMO Danny Ainge messed up when he didnt try to combine the 16 and 23 picks with some good second rounders to move up to get another lottery pick. Then the draft wouldnt be about just Jaylen Brown.

I don't know how you can make any conclusions on Yabu at this point it just has to play out, it is a gamble but unless you watch a lot of French Basketball I am not sure you can really conclude anything on him yet he is only 20.

What makes you think that trade was there to be made? It took Bagdonovic and #28 and a second to get from 13 to 8.

Beyond the ability to even make the trade who is the player your trading up for? Who is the guy between 16 and 8 you are trading up for?

Chriss. I don't see how Bogdonivich holds so much value that the Celtics couldn't have topped that paltry offer without parting with a nets pick.

[Leprechaun18]

I dont think Yabu can defend in the NBA. IMO Danny Ainge messed up when he didnt try to combine the 16 and 23 picks with some good second rounders to move up to get another lottery pick. Then the draft wouldnt be about just Jaylen Brown.

I don't know how you can make any conclusions on Yabu at this point it just has to play out, it is a gamble but unless you watch a lot of French Basketball I am not sure you can really conclude anything on him yet he is only 20.

What makes you think that trade was there to be made? It took Bagdonovic and #28 and a second to get from 13 to 8.

Beyond the ability to even make the trade who is the player your trading up for? Who is the guy between 16 and 8 you are trading up for?

The Celtics had a treasure trove of draft picks this last season. I just don't feel like we had a great draft. There are plenty of good guys after 7. Poeltl, Chriss, or Sabonis.

[sully00]

I dont think Yabu can defend in the NBA. IMO Danny Ainge messed up when he didnt try to combine the 16 and 23 picks with some good second rounders to move up to get another lottery pick. Then the draft wouldnt be about just Jaylen Brown.

I don't know how you can make any conclusions on Yabu at this point it just has to play out, it is a gamble but unless you watch a lot of French Basketball I am not sure you can really conclude anything on him yet he is only 20.

What makes you think that trade was there to be made? It took Bagdonovic and #28 and a second to get from 13 to 8.

Beyond the ability to even make the trade who is the player your trading up for? Who is the guy between 16 and 8 you are trading up for?

Chriss. I don't see how Bogdonivich holds so much value that the Celtics couldn't have topped that paltry offer without parting with a nets pick.

What are you going to top it with? You have to make up for the difference between 16 and 13 and Badonovic. You offer Hunter and\or Young and the answer is no. Rozier is probably a no. That assumes Ainge really wants Chriss which he probably doesn't.

[Homerclease]

I don't know how you can make any conclusions on Yabu at this point it just has to play out, it is a gamble but unless you watch a lot of French Basketball I am not sure you can really conclude anything on him yet he is only 20.

What makes you think that trade was there to be made? It took Bagdonovic and #28 and a second to get from 13 to 8.

Beyond the ability to even make the trade who is the player your trading up for? Who is the guy between 16 and 8 you are trading up for?

Chriss. I don't see how Bogdonivich holds so much value that the Celtics couldn't have topped that paltry offer without parting with a nets pick.

What are you going to top it with? You have to make up for the difference between 16 and 13 and Badonovic. You offer Hunter and\or Young and the answer is no. Rozier is probably a no. That assumes Ainge really wants Chriss which he probably doesn't.

16/23/31 Memphis pick is a far superior offer than what they took

[Jammer]

With the Durant dream likely done (unless things implode in Golden State this year), I'm turning my attention to Anthony Davis & Gordan Hayward

Let's just say we end up with the #1 or #2 pick in the 2017 draft. And let's just say the top of the draft is really strong. Let's also say that New Orleans misses the playoffs again and Anthony Davis grows frustrated with the organization. Finally, let's assume the Celtics have a really good season with development from their young core.

These are all items that have a good chance of being true.

Draft night deal for Anthony Davis involving the #1 or #2 pick, a couple young players and a vet. Probably the 18 BK pick as well.

Jaylen Brown, #2 pick, Zeller (contract flexibility to help match dollars), BK18 as a core to the deal.

Sign Hayward as a free agent.

Thomas-Hayward-Crowder-Davis-Horford
Rozier-Bradley-Smart-Olynyk-Vet

That team can beat Cleveland if this years team can't! Man.....I just got WAY AHEAD.

Everyone dreams of Anthony Davis, but the team that might try for him first is Minnesota. Rubio is expendable now thatTyus Jones won Summer League MVP and Kris Dunn is on board as well. Anthony Davis is a Kentucky alum, just like Karl Anthony Towns. I can see Minny making a play for Davis.

[greenmachine_2849]

I dont think Yabu can defend in the NBA. IMO Danny Ainge messed up when he didnt try to combine the 16 and 23 picks with some good second rounders to move up to get another lottery pick. Then the draft wouldnt be about just Jaylen Brown.

I don't know how you can make any conclusions on Yabu at this point it just has to play out, it is a gamble but unless you watch a lot of French Basketball I am not sure you can really conclude anything on him yet he is only 20.

What makes you think that trade was there to be made? It took Bagdonovic and #28 and a second to get from 13 to 8.

Beyond the ability to even make the trade who is the player your trading up for? Who is the guy between 16 and 8 you are trading up for?

Any pick 14 or better is considered in the lottery. I don't think it would have been all that difficult to package the 16 and 23, along with a couple of second rounders, and convince one of the teams at 12, 13, or 14 to trade their late lottery pick for that package.

But the main point is that we all knew for the better part of a year that we were going to have close to ten draft picks in the 2016 draft IF Ainge did not make a move in the interim. He had plenty of opportunities to include some of these picks in trades throughout the year but failed to do so. As a result, he had to go out of his way to draft players in the mid first round that would be agreeable to playing overseas for the next year or two. And I would say the odds are very, very good that these players were not the best available players at those spots. And furthermore, I think there is a decent chance neither of these players ever even make their way to the NBA, which would have made their drafting a complete waste.

Ainge has had a pretty good off-season this year, but when it came to the draft he had absolutely horrible asset management. I think that is indisputable, given the evidence.

[sully00]

Chriss. I don't see how Bogdonivich holds so much value that the Celtics couldn't have topped that paltry offer without parting with a nets pick.

What are you going to top it with? You have to make up for the difference between 16 and 13 and Badonovic. You offer Hunter and\or Young and the answer is no. Rozier is probably a no. That assumes Ainge really wants Chriss which he probably doesn't.

16/23/31 Memphis pick is a far superior offer than what they took

I guess but why would Boston include that pick? The Memphis pick has pretty limited protection and has more value than anything else Boston is offering in this trade, no need to consolidate long term assets. The other issue is that SAC likely wanted Bagdonovic because he contribute right away.

I think you are overvaluing Chriss and this draft significantly, a draft is as good as the players in it My expectations for Chriss are simliar to Noah Vonleh your going to have to wait on him for 3 or 4 years and then make an investment to keep him at that point.

If 16/23/31/35 would have gotten it done I think Ainge would have been all for that.