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Boston Celtics: Top 10 “Could Have Been’s” Since 1996

By Jamie Gallagher

Jun 25, 2015; Brooklyn, NY, USA; General view of the stage before the start of the 2015 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 25, 2015; Brooklyn, NY, USA; General view of the stage before the start of the 2015 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports /
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Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports /

Number 8: Zach Randolph

Career Averages: 17.0 Points/9.4 Rebounds

Awards: NBA Most Improved Player 2003-04/2x NBA All Star/1x All NBA Third Team

You could argue that Gasol should be in this spot instead of Randolph. But the fact is, Gasol’s dominance as a big man in this league started only a few seasons ago and while he has been extremely successful, Z-Bo has been a force in this league for 16 seasons now.

Even in his hot-head days in Portland, Zach Randolph was one of the best offensive big men in the league.

Randolph was taken with the 19th overall pick in the 2001 NBA Draft by the Portland Trail Blazers, a draft that ended up being quite the disaster for the Celtics. Boston had three picks in the first round in the 01′ draft, numbers 10,11, and 21.

With the 11th pick in the draft the Celtics decided to take Kendrick Brown. Brown spent 5 seasons in the NBA but never panned out to be a legitimate NBA player. He averaged just over 3 points per game for his career.

Randolph on the other hand has finished a season averaging 20 points and 10 rebounds, six times over the course of his career.

There’s no question that there were some red flags surrounding Randolph when he entered the draft. His temper and inability to remain levelheaded certainly played a part in the former McDonald’s All American’s draft stock, but I still believe the Celtics could have and should have taken the chance on Z-Bo with at least one of their first round picks in the 2001 draft.

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