The NBA Draft is not the same as the NFL Draft. With only two rounds compared to seven, teams look to select the best player available, not selecting for need. If that has been the Boston Celtics approach of late, they need to refine it.
They had the right idea with Aaron Nesmith, but he didn’t pan out. Romeo Langford showed even less promise than Nesmith. Payton Pritchard has game, but he fell out of favor with head coaches Ime Udoka first, then Joe Mazzulla.
Maybe Yam Madar and Juhann Begarin will develop into the best player selected at the time. For now, they’re still overseas trying to prove to the Boston brain trust they’re ready to play at the highest level.
J.D. Davison showed some promise while finishing fourth in the G League in assists with 8.7. But is he ready for a role in 2023-24?
Looking back at the past four drafts, Grant Williams is the only rotation player produced. He’s a restricted free agent now, so the Celtics are at risk of losing him to another team.
Boston Celtics can find a useful player even with the 35th overall selection
The Celtics are close to being a championship team. The right moves could get them over the top, starting with the draft. Maybe president of basketball operations Brad Stevens values salary cap space more than a rookie salary this year, but finding cheap, productive depth is important as well.
The latter can be found in this draft. Don’t forget that Glen “Big Baby” Davis played valuable minutes for the Celtics during the 2007-08 championship run. Ideally the Celtics find another “Big Baby” in this draft.
The Boston Celtics don’t have to look far to recall a productive player selected with the 35th overall selection in 2007. That’s when they drafted Davis.
Boston Celtics draft: Trayce Jackson-Davis, Indiana
At the top of this list is the decorated leader of the Indiana Hoosiers, Trayce Jackson-Davis. For years the Boston Celtics needed big man depth. It caught up to Boston at the worst time.
According to reports, Robert Williams dealt with a stomach bug during the playoffs. It limited him to 14 minutes in game seven against the Miami Heat, as he was throwing up whenever he exited the game.
A healthy Williams may not had changed the result of game seven, but having another defensive presence for the Celtics to turn to would had been very valuable.
Jackson-Davis was selected All-Big Ten first team and All-Big Ten Defense first team. He was second in the conference in scoring (20.9), second in rebounds (10.8), first in blocks (2.9) and seventh in assists (4.0).
The assists stand out. Jackson-Davis has excellent court vision. He’s able to lead the break and find open teammates anywhere on the floor.
Jackson-Davis is a great all-around athlete with a 36.5” max vertical and a 7-1 wingspan to defend the rim. And as a senior, he should be ready to play on day one.
Though Jackson-Davis is a productive post scorer, he’s very left hand dominant, with very little ability to finish with his right hand. Nor can he stretch the floor. In four years in Indiana, Jackson-Davis attempted and missed just three 3-pointers.
Despite his offensive limitations, Jackson-Davis provides necessary depth, defense and ball movement the Celtics dearly need. For years I endorsed the idea of Boston having another Rob Will. Jackson-Davis could be that guy.
The question is whether Jackson-Davis will be available by the 35th selection. He could sneak into the first round, if not selected just before the Boston Celtics are on the clock.
Boston Celtics draft: Kobe Brown, Missouri
Last year the Boston Celtics added Trevion Williams to their Summer League roster but didn’t sign him to the Maine Celtics. If Boston drafts Kobe Brown, this selection will make up for letting Williams go. Brown could end up being better than Williams.
The rugged Brown is 6-6.5 without shoes and is blessed with an almost 7-1 wingspan. Like Jackson-Davis, Brown has excellent floor vision and keeps his eyes up court to find sprinting teammates for easy buckets.
On offense, Brown can bully defenders in the post and has a soft touch around the rim. And last season he shot a ridiculous 45.5 percent on three pointers, though there are reasons to be skeptical about that.
Statistically Aaron Nesmith was the best 3-point shooter coming out of the 2020 draft after connecting on .522 of his attempts. He didn’t come close to being that good of a shooter with the Celtics. While Brown has a larger sample size, he career high before the 2022-23 season was .253. It’s reasonable to question whether Brown really did improve dramatically or if last season was an outlier.
There are also concerns about Brown defensively. At 250 pounds, he’s more than strong enough to get physical with big men and has the reach to contest shots at the rim. But he will struggle with smaller players on the perimeter. Many analysts believe Brown should shed some pounds for the NBA. That’s understandable, though it shouldn’t be so much it compromises his ability to defend power forwards and centers.
There’s a very real possibility that the Boston Celtics could lose Grant Williams via free agency. But don’t think of Brown as G-Will’s replacement. If Danillo Gallinari remains with the Celtics, he likely assumes those minutes as a floor-spacing big. But Brown, a senior, can carve a role filling other aspects of Grant’s game.
Boston Celtics draft: Jordan Walsh, Arkansas
There are rumors that the Boston Celtics are interested in selecting UConn swingman Andre Jackson Jr. This doesn’t make sense, especially if Arkansas’ Jordan Walsh is still on the board.
Jackson Jr. is a great athlete, an excellent defender and sees the court very well on offense. But his jumper is broken. It’s an ugly shot that he connected on just .281 of his 3-point attempts. Jackson Jr. can’t be a 3-and-D role player with an unreliable shot.
The Celtics would be better off taking their chances with Walsh. Walsh and Jackson Jr. are similar when it comes to athleticism, defense and inaccuracy from distance (.278). The difference is Walsh’s release looks clean. There’s better potential to develop that form into an effective shot.
The other huge difference between Walsh and Jackson Jr. is Walsh is a freshman while Jackson Jr. just finished his third year. Walsh’s jumper needs to be polished. Jackson Jr. requires a complete overhaul, and time isn’t on his side.
As a prospect, Walsh’s long, lean build enables him to defend up to four positions. He smothers ball handlers on the perimeter, and is tough to get around due to his lateral quickness and near 7-2 wingspan.
And while his shot is a work in progress, Walsh will be an excellent finisher in transition. He can get ahead on fast breaks and be a lob target in the half court.
To get the most out of Walsh will take time, though. He needs to get stronger to play against grown men. Though his defense is ready right out of the box, Walsh will require incubation time in the G League to put on weight and burnish his 3-point shooting.
But in a year or two Walsh should develop into a fierce 3-and-D player. He would be worth the wait.
Boston Celtics draft: James Nnaji, Barcelona
You would think witnessing the impact Robert Williams has for the Boston Celtics, and Williams’ availability history, would had convinced the team to add a similar big man to the roster for depth years ago. James Nnaji’s athleticism gives him the foundation to eventually develop into a similar defensive presence.
Before stepping on the court, Nnaji stands out for being a legit 6-10 with a 7-5 wingspan. Already he’s built to protect the rim. Add the bounce to hang in the air and the agility to move his feet, and Nnaji is an athlete that can erase many shots at the rim.
Also appealing is his appetite for glass. Nnaji hits the boards hard, particularly the offensive glass. His pursuit will lead to plenty of put-back dunks or easy buckets.
To tamper expectations, Nnaji is just 18 years old. He is far from a finished product. There’s a lot of basketball that Nnaji still has to learn before he’s ready to step onto an NBA court.
While built to patrol the paint, the IQ has a way to go until the brain catches up to the physical ability. On offense, Nnaji lacks basic scoring ability. He doesn’t shoot threes or midrange shots. And you can’t give him the ball in the post and let him operate.
But the lack of offense isn’t very concerning. Williams isn’t asked to score. He gets his buckets off cleanups and pick-and-roll action. Nnaji easily can do that at the next level while controlling the paint on the other end of the floor.
It probably will be a while before he does that for the Boston Celtics. It wouldn’t be surprising if Nnaji was returned to Barcelona with homework to do. The Celtics are in win-now mode. Nnaji isn’t ready for that.