Official Boston Celtics Thread

[Green Magic]

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So How do you think they can get back to the top and win banner 18

[tonybologna]

Why is this thread in the wrenches of the dead? No replies in 5 years from this thread? A legendary team like the Boston Celtics? Well, it's time to totally revive this thread. Where have the Celtics fans been? I know there's some on here because I see it from their avatars. The Celts have now made the playoffs 2 straight seasons.

They are a team up & coming again. They are beginning to get talent again that made them so good back in the older days. With Isiah Thomas now their leader & other solid young players the Celtics are becoming a really solid NBA contending team again.

They will have 8(yes 8 draft picks) in the coming 2016 NBA draft. This should just add to the young talent they already have on the roster. They also have a lot of CAP space money($58 million) to spend on some bigtime FA's if they want. Here is the link to the story of their upcoming 8 draft picks: http://espn.go.com/blog/boston/celti...g-in-prospects

Now that Ive brought this thread back to life let's see some Celtic fans post now. GO CELTICS!

[areobee401]

I didn't even know we had a dedicated team thread.

Alright guys, what would YOU do with the 3rd overall pick in this year's draft? Lots of speculation surrounding the pick. Do you use the pick to draft a player, and if so who, or do you trade the pick for an already established player, and again, who?

Let's try to keep our wants somewhat realistic.

[jeremym480]

Quote: Originally Posted by areobee401

I didn't even know we had a dedicated team thread. Alright guys, what would YOU do with the 3rd overall pick in this year's draft? Lots of speculation surrounding the pick. Do you use the pick to draft a player, and if so who, or do you trade the pick for an already established player, and again, who? Let's try to keep our wants somewhat realistic.

I keep going back and fourth on what I want. I'm trying to look at this optimistically and think there's really not a way that Boston can screw this up. Here's my thoughts:

Plan A - The Win Now Plan - Make a huge deal for a Superstar (Boogie, PG13, Butler, etc.) It's what I most want to see, but it's probably the least likely.

Plan B - The get better, but probably still a year/player or two away from really contending for a title Plan - As I said yesterday, if we can't make a HUGE deal, then part of my wants to trade the pick for Jahlil Okafor. He would be much cheaper than signing someone like Horford. Plus, I think if Okafor has a lot of potential. Him and IT running the PnR seems like a sweet combo. He just has to get much better defensively.

Plan C The Draft the Prospect with the Highest Celing Plan - The more I see of Dragon Bender the more enamored I am with him. He's so agile for a guy that's 7'1. I don't know if he would be ready to step out on the court and play from Day One, but he could really be something in the future. If they did draft him, then they could use our cap space to sign a FA or two. Note: This could easily turn into Plan B for me. I'm still up in the air.

Plan D - Go with BPA Plan - I admit that I don't watch a ton of college basketball, but from what I've seen Buddy Hield is a great scorer and could be the BPA at 3. Now, I now that guard isn't really a position of need, but honestly outside of IT, Bradley and Smart I'm not really sold on any of the other guys. If another team is high on another prospect here, then this could give Boston the opportunity to trade down and acquire even more assets (not that they really need them for this draft). Also, if this happens, signing someone like Horford or trading for someone like Marc Gasol is a must.


Anyway, that's my thoughts with my NBA 2K GM hat on... I'm sure Danny Boy has a completely different plan in mind though.

[BleacherBum2310]

Quote: Originally Posted by areobee401

I didn't even know we had a dedicated team thread. Alright guys, what would YOU do with the 3rd overall pick in this year's draft? Lots of speculation surrounding the pick. Do you use the pick to draft a player, and if so who, or do you trade the pick for an already established player, and again, who? Let's try to keep our wants somewhat realistic.

Trade the pick hopefully for Boogie or Jimmy Butler.

If they keep the pick or Picks. my preference is Bender and then with 16th pick take the high floor player.

[tonybologna]

Quote: Originally Posted by areobee401

I didn't even know we had a dedicated team thread. Alright guys, what would YOU do with the 3rd overall pick in this year's draft? Lots of speculation surrounding the pick. Do you use the pick to draft a player, and if so who, or do you trade the pick for an already established player, and again, who? Let's try to keep our wants somewhat realistic.

This thread was dead. I revived it after digging it out from a search. There hadn't been a post in this thread since 2012. Yes, 2012. That surprised me because I knew there was some Celtics fans on here.

As for us as having the #3 overall pick. We could either draft somebody with the pick or trade it. The fall off after the top 2(Simmons & Ingram) is significant. I could see us trading this pick for future picks or players from other teams.

Most mock draft boards have us picking Jamal Murray from UK. Some have us taking Kris Dunn from Providence. Another has us taking Dragan Bender from Israel. I just don't know about any of those 3 or any others that some mock draft boards have us picking. There are no future franchise building prospects I feel in this draft after Ingram & Simmons. Those are the only 2 in my opinion.

Looking at the mock draft boards why would we want Jamal Murray? This team is already guard heavy. Same thing with Kris Dunn. I could see picking Dragan Bender over the other 2 guys. We do need some help under the basket. Sullinger is really our only threat scoring under the basket. Amir Johnson is really only a rebounder & defender but he's not an offensive threat. Zeller who I think could give us more isn't getting enough playing time to provide much.

One player from the draft I personally like is Jaylon Brown & can score in a number of ways plus he's a good defender. I would rather have him than any of the guards that's been mentioned in us taking at #3. If we decide to use the pick to draft a player I would want either Dragan Bender or Jaylon Brown.

Having said that, I think Ainge is going to pull off a trade somehow with that pick & get some player(s) from another team(s) in return or more future picks. We have a ton of CAP space too so we could also go big during FA so what we do with this pick is up in the air in my opinion.

Quote: Originally Posted by jeremym480

I keep going back and fourth on what I want. I'm trying to look at this optimistically and think there's really not a way that Boston can screw this up. Here's my thoughts: Plan A - The Win Now Plan - Make a huge deal for a Superstar (Boogie, PG13, Butler, etc.) It's what I most want to see, but it's probably the least likely. Plan B - The get better, but probably still a year/player or two away from really contending for a title Plan - As I said yesterday, if we can't make a HUGE deal, then part of my wants to trade the pick for Jahlil Okafor. He would be much cheaper than signing someone like Horford. Plus, I think if Okafor has a lot of potential. Him and IT running the PnR seems like a sweet combo. He just has to get much better defensively. Plan C The Draft the Prospect with the Highest Celing Plan - The more I see of Dragon Bender the more enamored I am with him. He's so agile for a guy that's 7'1. I don't know if he would be ready to step out on the court and play from Day One, but he could really be something in the future. If they did draft him, then they could use our cap space to sign a FA or two. Note: This could easily turn into Plan B for me. I'm still up in the air. Plan D - Go with BPA Plan - I admit that I don't watch a ton of college basketball, but from what I've seen Buddy Hield is a great scorer and could be the BPA at 3. Now, I now that guard isn't really a position of need, but honestly outside of IT, Bradley and Smart I'm not really sold on any of the other guys. If another team is high on another prospect here, then this could give Boston the opportunity to trade down and acquire even more assets (not that they really need them for this draft). Also, if this happens, signing someone like Horford or trading for someone like Marc Gasol is a must. Anyway, that's my thoughts with my NBA 2K GM hat on... I'm sure Danny Boy has a completely different plan in mind though.

Some nice thinking you have there buddy. I too am with you on Bender. I think he would fit our needs more than anything else right now with the get better now plan. He does have a high ceiling too. We don't have much to give on the inside right now like I said except for Sullinger but he's not what you call a true Center. He's a PF with the height of a SF. It's his size/weight that allows him to play under the basket.

If we do decide to go for a guard I too would rather us pick Buddy Hield than either Murray or Dunn. He's the best shooter in this draft. Not Jamal Murray. Not Kris Dunn. Dunn I know is a PG & not a SG but still if we're going to go guard Hield would be the better option.

You're getting a very experienced player from college & a guy with great character as well. I've heard Dunn is a hot head from rumors so he might be difficult to deal with.

We're gonna have a shot at getting at least one if not two really good FA's with great CAP space. Or, we trade that pick at #3 for 1-2 players from another team(s) to fit what we're doing in Boston. The Celtics are back now as a contending team. That should allow for the good/great FA's to look at Boston as a possible destination.

There's going to be quite a few FA's available this off-season. Some big name stars & some other really good players. Can we get at least one to come to Boston? That's a hard question to answer but we're back now. We just need 1-2 good/great players to take us over the hump. I don't think we get those type of players from the draft period. I do think Bender could end up being an All-Star though in the future.

I could see Ainge using most of the money to sign some of these available FA's but still use the #3 pick to get a player instead of trading it away. I could also see him going the other way & trading it away to get other players from another team(s).

We're most definitely not going to use all 8 picks in this draft. I would be surprised if we used more than 4 picks to actually pick a player from this draft. We might not even use more than 1-2 to be honest. At least 4 picks are going to be used as trade bait.

Some of the FA's I think we should consider are the following:

1. Andre Drummond(RFA)- Drummond would be a great pick up for us as a true under the basket/rim type player. He's not a shooting big man but he's really good at what he does. He's now become the best rebounding big man in the game. The RFA indicated above that he is a Restricted Free Agent though. So, the Pistons can still match other teams offers which is likely to happen.

2. Al Horford(Unrestricted FA)- Horford would be a much better option than Amir Johnson. Horford now being a solid two way player would help us tremendously. He can rebound. He can shoot. He can play defense. I don't know how well he fits the Celtics style of play though.

3. Kevin Durant(Unrestricted FA)- You might be asking Kevin Durant coming to Boston? Yes, I'm saying why not go after him to see if we can lure him to the Celtics? It's not likely but we throw the right offer at him & he may not be able to turn it down.

Of course, we're not mentioned as a possible landing spot for him but never lose hope. Players change their minds all the time & Durant now sees that we're a team on the rise instead of going the other way. Crowder is a decent SF along with Evan Turner(another UFA so he's probably gone) but we all know Durant is one of the top 3 players in the NBA. I put him behind Curry & LeBron only right now. It's going to cost a lot to get him. We know that just as any other team does. We have the CAP space plus if needed trade draft picks away as well.

4. Evan Turner(Unrestriced FA)- Will we bring Evan back to Boston? Will he go elsewhere?. He's said management has told him they do want him back. It would have to come at a discounted price though to stay in Boston.

Turner doesn't do any one thing great but he does everything well. He's lead us to quite a few wins in his last 2 seasons in Boston. His only real weakness is 3 pt shooting but towards the end of this past season he hit some key 3 pointers. I would love to see him come back to play in Boston for another 2-3 years myself. Problem is he's going to get better offers from other teams.

How bad does he want to stay on this team? He's said he liked it in Boston. He liked his teammates that he's had while here. I think there's a chance but if I had to make a guess he will sign with another team for more money.

5. Hassan Whiteside(Unrestricted FA)- Another big man that could really help us under the basket. He's still very young. He has a lot of talent to improve with a high ceiling. He can rebound. He can block shots. He can score off rebounds & can also score posting up. Would he be a better option than Drummond? Possibly so because he's younger & more athletic. He would also cost less than Drummond as well.

5. Pau Gasol(Player Option)- Pau Gasol has a player option to either pick up or decline from the Bulls. He will probably accept his player option to stay in Chicago but if he doesn't we should look at him as well. He's not getting any younger though at 35 years old. He can still score the ball & block shots. He has the mid range game to post game still working for him. He's still got at least 2 more good seasons left in his body.

6. Ryan Anderson(Unrestricted FA)- He would bring us a solid outside shooting big man. His defense is terrible but he can shoot the 3 ball really well. He plays the PF position but is more of a SF because of his shooting. We bring him to Boston so Amir Johnson & him can split time on the court. Two totally different players but a mixture of styles at the PF spot would be nice. We also have Jonas Jerebko on the roster at PF as well for next season so I don't know how that would play out.

7. Chandler Parsons(Player Option)- Chandler has a player option for the Mavericks. My guess is that he will not turn down that type of money to opt out & become a FA. If he does, he's another player we need to look really hard at signing. Parsons can do a lot of things well just like Turner but he has more size.

He does have injury issues though. He can shoot the ball. He can rebound. He is athletic for his size & build. He's a decent defender but not great. He could split time with Crowder at SF if we bring him here.

There are other players that we could consider as well. Players like Bradley Beal(Restricted FA), Nicolas Batum(Unrestricted FA), Kent Bazemore(Unrestricted FA), & yes Dwight Howard(player option) as well. Howard is not happy at all in Houston so I'd say he opts out for next season & becomes a FA.

He can be signed at a discount as to what he used to be paid because he's never lived up to superstar status. Why not throw an offer at him too? That would be all be dependent upon him opting out 1st though. I would add in LeBron too but no way he signs with Boston. He doesn't like Boston.

[redsox4evur]

I have been saying trade the pick, first and foremost. I don't care who we get (PG, Butler, Boogie, Okafor). I don't know much of anything about anyone really outside of Hield so I can't say what we should do with that pick. But with our 2nd first (Dallas one) I want Bryce Johnson from UNC. I watched some highlights of him from last year. Seems like he could be a nice role player. Fights on the boards, can attack the hoop. For a mid first I would feel happy with that pick.

Jeremy on your plan D, and specifically Hield. He would be a great fit here. Who do we have that can shoot from deep consistently?

[tonybologna]

Quote: Originally Posted by redsox4evur

I have been saying trade the pick, first and foremost. I don't care who we get (PG, Butler, Boogie, Okafor). I don't know much of anything about anyone really outside of Hield so I can't say what we should do with that pick. But with our 2nd first (Dallas one) I want Bryce Johnson from UNC. I watched some highlights of him from last year. Seems like he could be a nice role player. Fights on the boards, can attack the hoop. For a mid first I would feel happy with that pick. Jeremy on your plan D, and specifically Hield. He would be a great fit here. Who do we have that can shoot from deep consistently?

I like your thinking too on drafting Bryce Johnson with the 2nd pick we have in the 1st round. He's so athletic for a guy his height. He can shoot decently up to 15-18 feet out too. He's a scrappy guy on the boards. He fights for every rebound on both ends of the floor. He can jump out of the building.

I don't know what his vertical is but it's got to be at least 38-40". He is so quick too. He would be a great pick for us where you say to take him & he could develop into a solid contributor for the Celtics hopefully for a long time. Will he be there though at that point to be picked? All signs point to yes going by all the mock draft boards I've seen.

I also wouldn't mind drafting Hield if we're going to use that 3rd overall pick. I had mentioned us in need more of a big man but Hield would be fine as well. That would mean somebody like Bradley or Smart or some other guard would have to go though.

No way we keep that many guards on this roster. That's why I say we need bigs way more than guards. But, if we think Hield fits our system well & want a great shooter do whatever we have to in order to make the team better. We can always look at FA for a PF/C or draft/trade for one with all of our other picks.