2025 NBA Draft Thread, part 1 – Capture the Flagg

[playa-hater]

Since I am still stuck in "please trade up mode", with 30+32.. What players projected late teens-early 20s would you take??? There has to be a high Ceiling talent available that isn't 2 years away from making an impact in rotation.

Reminder, Boston may not have a chance to draft that high Again for years!

[djFan71]

I'm liking Will Riley and Asa Newell right now - both probably out of our trade up range come draft day, though. Unless we include something substantially more than our '25 picks.

Noa Essengue might be the best answer right as a good trade up that we might have a chance for with the 2 picks, that's highly unlikely to be there at 29-30 range. I have a tough time thinking you'll get much higher than 20-22 range, though, and he is probably gone in the teens.

20-40 in so undefined right now it's hard to know. Guys like Toppin, Mgbako, Clifford, Carter Bryant, Sallis, Catchings, Thiero all seem like they'll be in the mix for me depending on how their years go.

[Hal14]

I'm liking Will Riley and Asa Newell right now - both probably out of our trade up range come draft day, though. Unless we include something substantially more than our '25 picks.

Noa Essengue might be the best answer right as a good trade up that we might have a chance for with the 2 picks, that's highly unlikely to be there at 29-30 range. I have a tough time thinking you'll get much higher than 20-22 range, though, and he is probably gone in the teens.

20-40 in so undefined right now it's hard to know. Guys like Toppin, Mgbako, Clifford, Carter Bryant, Sallis, Catchings, Thiero all seem like they'll be in the mix for me depending on how their years go.

Solid list of names, all guys who could be in play for us if we stay at 30, or possibly if we trade up..or as a 2nd round pick.

I would just say I'm not wild about Mgbako. He seems to never pass the ball. And his defense is meh. So all he does is score and he's just decent at it. Seems like a Marcus Morris/TJ Warren type, which I'm not wild about that type of player here..

Toppin, Sallis and Thiero are all very intriguing.

A couple other names I'll throw out there: Noah Penda and Alex Toohey. Both are guys whose natural position is the 4 (could also play some 3 and maybe even some small ball 5..especially if they add some more weight). They can both shoot, put the ball on the floor a bit. Penda a little better defensively. Penda is also a little bit younger. Both can pass too - not ball stoppers. Both pretty high IQ, fundamentally sound players..

[phincsfan]

A run on overseas players in the 1st would be good for C's chance of someone sliding.

[phincsfan]

The last time the C's had the last pick in the 1st round and the Pats had the 1st pick in the 1st round was 1984.

[brackdan70]

I hope we pick a younger dude with upside rather than a 24 year old….at least with one of the picks.
Give me a couple more Razorbacks.

[playa-hater]

I hope we pick a younger dude with upside rather than a 24 year old….at least with one of the picks.
Give me a couple more Razorbacks.

give me names Dangit!

[phincsfan]

I hope we pick a younger dude with upside rather than a 24 year old….at least with one of the picks.
Give me a couple more Razorbacks.

give me names Dangit!

Boogie Fland would be nice

He'll be gone top 15 though

[djFan71]

I'm liking Will Riley and Asa Newell right now - both probably out of our trade up range come draft day, though. Unless we include something substantially more than our '25 picks.

Noa Essengue might be the best answer right as a good trade up that we might have a chance for with the 2 picks, that's highly unlikely to be there at 29-30 range. I have a tough time thinking you'll get much higher than 20-22 range, though, and he is probably gone in the teens.

20-40 in so undefined right now it's hard to know. Guys like Toppin, Mgbako, Clifford, Carter Bryant, Sallis, Catchings, Thiero all seem like they'll be in the mix for me depending on how their years go.

Solid list of names, all guys who could be in play for us if we stay at 30, or possibly if we trade up..or as a 2nd round pick.

I would just say I'm not wild about Mgbako. He seems to never pass the ball. And his defense is meh. So all he does is score and he's just decent at it. Seems like a Marcus Morris type, which I'm not wild about that type of player here..

Toppin, Sallis and Thiero are all very intriguing.

A couple other names I'll throw out there: Noah Penda and Alex Toohey. Both are guys whose natural position is the 4 (could also play some 3 and maybe even some small ball 5..especially if they add some more weight). They can both shoot, put the ball on the floor a bit. Penda a little better defensively. Penda is also a little bit younger. Both can pass too - not ball stoppers. Both pretty high IQ, fundamentally sound players..

Thanks, I'll add them to the list. I haven't seen what I really want yet (a PF/C Horford type or a tall playmaking guard) truly jump out at me yet that's in our range. So just collecting names at this point, lol. Mgbako is one of the ones I just added - probably part left over Mogbo feelings - but haven't really dove into.

nbadraftroom updated today and the first 3 I mentioned are WAY out of our range now: Essengue 9, Newell 10, Riley 13.

[brackdan70]

I hope we pick a younger dude with upside rather than a 24 year old….at least with one of the picks.
Give me a couple more Razorbacks.

give me names Dangit!

Boogie Fland would be nice

He'll be gone top 15 though

Fland, Big Z, or Thiero are the Razorback I was thinking about.

[Smart2Nesmith43]

A run on overseas players in the 1st would be good for C's chance of someone sliding.

I don't understand this. There's the same number of guys drafted before the Celtics pick regardless of where they come from no ? So how does that affect the probability of someone sliding or is it just guys from the US that can slide ?

I hope we pick a younger dude with upside rather than a 24 year old….at least with one of the picks.
Give me a couple more Razorbacks.

give me names Dangit!

Well if you want to draft purely for upside Joan Beringer is probably the guy for you. Turned 18 this month and is already playing real minutes in one of the toughest leagues in the world which is really impressive considering he started playing basketball at 15. The downside is that he is years away from contributing on a contender but the Celtics have shown recently that they can be patient bringing guys along (see JD Davison for instance). Here he is in action during his last game:

Watch on YouTube

[phincsfan]

A run on overseas players in the 1st would be good for C's chance of someone sliding.

I don't understand this. There's the same number of guys drafted before the Celtics pick regardless of where they come from no ? So how does that affect the probability of someone sliding or is it just guys from the US that can slide ?

I hope we pick a younger dude with upside rather than a 24 year old….at least with one of the picks.
Give me a couple more Razorbacks.

It's too early to really give any real credence to mocks because they're all over the place. Some mocks have 6 overseas player going in the 1st and some have 3 going. If the C's are in the 28-30 slot and six overseas players go in the 1st before they pick than maybe a college target slips to them. Who they may be targeting I have no clue, but if it is a college player and I see 6 overseas players getting drafted within the first 25 picks I'll be looking forward to the C's pick. Then again, Stevens could easily have an overseas target. I don't know. A Sallis or Toppin could be players who slip because of an overseas run in the 1st.

This would be a nice draft to pick up another 2nd.

Boogie is a dream, but I'd be happy with a combo of Sallis, Kam Jones and a late flyer on Grant Nelson.

[phincsfan]

Good game today for djfan's guy, Tyrese Proctor.

He's been really shooting it well. Even though he struggled to shot as a freshman. Just goes to show, that some guys really benefit from staying in school and developing more - so they are more NBA-ready when they leave college and therefore have a better chance to stick.

Still not sold on him being a 1st round pick but he's definitely worth a 2nd round swing, at least.

He's got another year of college eligibility though, so he might stay in college another year..if he's not guaranteed to be a 1st rounder.

Either way, he's been playing well and pretty much looks NBA-ready..part of the appeal is being able to play on ball as a facilitator PG who can also shoot..but he's also been playing well off ball..as a catch and shoot guy and attacking closeouts.

The defense is passable..

The NIL really makes things interesting because it gives potential 2nd rd picks a cushion to take a chance and come out and fight for a contract or it could give them the opportunity to stay another year to work themselves into the 1st rd the following year. All the attention is on Flagg and Kon at Duke. High skilled, good size and coming from a good program makes him intriguing.

[Hal14]

A run on overseas players in the 1st would be good for C's chance of someone sliding.

I don't understand this. There's the same number of guys drafted before the Celtics pick regardless of where they come from no ? So how does that affect the probability of someone sliding or is it just guys from the US that can slide ?

It's too early to really give any real credence to mocks because they're all over the place. Some mocks have 6 overseas player going in the 1st and some have 3 going. If the C's are in the 28-30 slot and six overseas players go in the 1st before they pick than maybe a college target slips to them. Who they may be targeting I have no clue, but if it is a college player and I see 6 overseas players getting drafted within the first 25 picks I'll be looking forward to the C's pick. Then again, Stevens could easily have an overseas target. I don't know. A Sallis or Toppin could be players who slip because of an overseas run in the 1st.

This would be a nice draft to pick up another 2nd.

Boogie is a dream, but I'd be happy with a combo of Sallis, Kam Jones and a late flyer on Grant Nelson.

I think Smart2Nesmith's point is that you seem to be implying that overseas players = bad and college players = good.

If that's your preference, that's fine I guess but that seems a bit misguided since there's so many good overseas players in the league today..I think if a guy can play, a guy can play..regardless of whether he played at Duke or the Spanish league..

[phincsfan]

I don't understand this. There's the same number of guys drafted before the Celtics pick regardless of where they come from no ? So how does that affect the probability of someone sliding or is it just guys from the US that can slide ?

It's too early to really give any real credence to mocks because they're all over the place. Some mocks have 6 overseas player going in the 1st and some have 3 going. If the C's are in the 28-30 slot and six overseas players go in the 1st before they pick than maybe a college target slips to them. Who they may be targeting I have no clue, but if it is a college player and I see 6 overseas players getting drafted within the first 25 picks I'll be looking forward to the C's pick. Then again, Stevens could easily have an overseas target. I don't know. A Sallis or Toppin could be players who slip because of an overseas run in the 1st.

This would be a nice draft to pick up another 2nd.

Boogie is a dream, but I'd be happy with a combo of Sallis, Kam Jones and a late flyer on Grant Nelson.

I think Smart2Nesmith's point is that you seem to be implying that overseas players = bad and college players = good.

If that's your preference, that's fine I guess but that seems a bit misguided since there's so many good overseas players in the league today..I think if a guy can play, a guy can play..regardless of whether he played at Duke or the Spanish league..

Nothing against overseas players at all. I'm just assuming that Stevens will be looking within the states. If that's the case than the more overseas players that go in the 1st gives a better chance their target is around.

[Dogen]

A run on overseas players in the 1st would be good for C's chance of someone sliding.

I don't understand this. There's the same number of guys drafted before the Celtics pick regardless of where they come from no ? So how does that affect the probability of someone sliding or is it just guys from the US that can slide ?

I hope we pick a younger dude with upside rather than a 24 year old….at least with one of the picks.
Give me a couple more Razorbacks.

give me names Dangit!

Well if you want to draft purely for upside Joan Beringer is probably the guy for you. Turned 18 this month and is already playing real minutes in one of the toughest leagues in the world which is really impressive considering he started playing basketball at 15. The downside is that he is years away from contributing on a contender but the Celtics have shown recently that they can be patient bringing guys along (see JD Davison for instance). Here he is in action during his last game:

Watch on YouTube

After taking a couple of 5 year college players this year, I wouldn't mind alternating with a high upside/high risk young Euro big that can be stashed. We need another JB. Joan Beringer could hang out with Juhann Begarin and study Jaylen Brown.

Also would be nice to have a 6-10 rim runner to give us that Timelord vibe again. He could be stashed for a year if picked in 2nd round, then brought over to play in Maine. Basically a guy for the 2027 season when the team is reloading.

[keevsnick1]

Looks like there's a good chance Celtics end up with a pick at either 29/30 and another at 31/32 (from the Wiz).

I imagine in that scenario they'd probably trade the first round pick (since it comes with a higher guaranteed salary), with the target being future draft capital. Maybe try to get a protected future first or 2 good second rounders for the pick. Assets they can use in future trades either to dump salary or get bench help. Probably doesn't make sense to add two young players to next years roster.

[redslastlaugh]

Looks like there's a good chance Celtics end up with a pick at either 29/30 and another at 31/32 (from the Wiz).

I imagine in that scenario they'd probably trade the first round pick (since it comes with a higher guaranteed salary), with the target being future draft capital. Maybe try to get a protected future first or 2 good second rounders for the pick. Assets they can use in future trades either to dump salary or get bench help. Probably doesn't make sense to add two young players to next years roster.

Or being the combo of draft looks strong and we need cheap salary players, we take two players and hope with two swings you can add one player who greatly outperforms the dollars committed over their first four years.

[165bows]

I hope we pick a younger dude with upside rather than a 24 year old….at least with one of the picks.
Give me a couple more Razorbacks.

give me names Dangit!

Maybe they can teach Adou Thiero how to shoot.

[phincsfan]

A run on overseas players in the 1st would be good for C's chance of someone sliding.

I don't understand this. There's the same number of guys drafted before the Celtics pick regardless of where they come from no ? So how does that affect the probability of someone sliding or is it just guys from the US that can slide ?

give me names Dangit!

Well if you want to draft purely for upside Joan Beringer is probably the guy for you. Turned 18 this month and is already playing real minutes in one of the toughest leagues in the world which is really impressive considering he started playing basketball at 15. The downside is that he is years away from contributing on a contender but the Celtics have shown recently that they can be patient bringing guys along (see JD Davison for instance). Here he is in action during his last game:

Watch on YouTube

After taking a couple of 5 year college players this year, I wouldn't mind alternating with a high upside/high risk young Euro big that can be stashed. We need another JB. Joan Beringer could hang out with Juhann Begarin and study Jaylen Brown.

Also would be nice to have a 6-10 rim runner to give us that Timelord vibe again. He could be stashed for a year if picked in 2nd round, then brought over to play in Maine. Basically a guy for the 2027 season when the team is reloading.

I really don't think the euro stash thing works. And I'm not just using Yam and JB as examples. I think for the most part they don't really pan out in the NBA. And for this Celtics roster, building the bench up is paramount. The core of the team (JT, JB and White) are all paid and still young. I'd rather go the G-League route with an overseas player but IMO, most of the 2nd rounders would rather be stashed overseas and get paid more than lets say an Anton Watson deal. Get targets for the system which we know shooting is important. Stashing them takes away the ability to get them in the system and work on what they want them to work and how they want them to work on it. It's like a machine.

This years draft in the 2nd rd will have a bunch of babies (age wise )compared to Rico and Anton. Plus there will be a few Euro's who are playing in college so IMO those guys are already settled in the states (Krivas and the Ivisic brothers). A quick look it seems the average age of mocked 2nd rounders is 21/22).

I posted earlier that unless a major target slips to the C's slot, I would trade back in the 2nd for another 2nd and a future 1st. Great scenario would be Charlotte's 2nd, possibly their rights to Denver's 2nd and the rights to their Dallas 2027 1st which is protected for 1 and 2. Charlotte is gonna have to fill roster slots next year especially since Grant is out. Rico obviously was a target that dropped and Stevens had no problem locking him up to that rookie deal. I'd rather a target than a reach in the 1st. A reach in the 2nd is fine because of the contract and control they will have won't be bad to the cap. And you never know, any 2nd rounder could turn out to be that guy who just needed the right NBA system to thrive.

Having three 2nds in this draft would be nice and it increases the odds of hitting on at least one to become a contributor during the J's window. I'd rather all three be in Maine developing with maybe one becoming a piece to replace a Springer and/or XMan. Not necessarily position wise just contributing wise.

Walsh is looking like he's gonna be a hit. Neems made up for the Begarin pick since they both were drafted in 21'. Peterson WILL be a hit. I've been on his bandwagon for a while. Rico's real chance will be next season. Watson may have a chance next year. But adding three more prospects increases those odds of hitting.

The kid Tyrese Proctor was mentioned before and I think a 2nd on him would be interesting. Steven's respects Duke, he has real good size, good shooter and a PG. Something I'd like to see Boston get in the system.