The NBA draft is almost here. For the Boston Celtics, pick 27 is theirs, and when it's time to make a selection, former UNC Tar Heel center Henri Veesaar should be an obvious choice.
At UNC this past season, Veesaar broke out, averaging 17 points and 8.7 rebounds per game. Veesaar was efficient when scoring, shooting 60.8% from the field and 42.6% from three on 3 attempts. Before this season, he spent the past two seasons playing for the Arizona Wildcats.
While Veesaar's numbers were good this past season, his interesting skill set is what makes him a great draft target for the Celtics.
Henri Veesaar is the top stretch five in the draft
When looking at the centers in this draft class, not only is Veesaar one of the better prospects, but he's also the best stretch-five by a country mile. As previously mentioned, Veesaar shot 42.6% from three-point range on 3 attempts per game, showing his shooting is legit. What makes this more impressive is his size.
At the NBA combine, Veesaar measured in at 6'111/4 barefoot, with a 7'2 wingspan and 9'3 standing reach. It's rare to find players with his size and shooting ability.
For the rest of his offensive game, the Estonian native is very comfortable playing in the pick-and-roll game. Whether it's rolling to the rim, popping out for a jump shot, or making a quick read with the ball, he can do it.
Speaking of his passing ability, while Veesaar isn't going to be someone you can run your offense through as a facilitator, he can make quick decisions and punish other teams. His finishing around the rim won't blow you away from an athleticism standpoint, but he's got a solid touch around and has shown multiple types of finishes.
Finally, he has a good understanding of rebounding from a positional standpoint and knows how to use his body and length to win rebounding battles.
Henri Veesaar may struggle defensively at the NBA level
As good as Veesaar is offensively, defensively, he has some shortcomings. Physicality is something he needs to greatly improve upon, along with adding some weight. He only weighed in at 227 pounds during the combine, and at that weight, centers will look to target him.
His foot speed and movement aren't great, making him someone you'd most likely want to keep in drop coverage instead of switching him onto the perimeter. Though he has done well as a defender in drop coverage, at the next level, teams won't be afraid to make him move consistently.
Lastly, Veesaar isn't going to be a big rim protector at the next level. For someone as tall as Veesaar, only averaging 1.2 blocks isn't promising. Free-throw shooting was also a struggle for him this past season, shooting 61.5% from the line.
Boston should draft Henri Veesaar due to his offensive strengths
With pick 27, you're not going to be able to find a perfect prospect, but Veesaar is still a solid choice and could be the best bet for Boston. Given his offensive strengths, Veesaar would fit like a glove in Joe Mazzulla's offense, being able to stretch the floor and make reads of pick-and-rolls.
Yes, Veesaar has his shortcomings defensively, but I think Boston can help limit some of them in the team's defensive scheme. Boston already plays drop coverage quite frequently, so it's not like the 22-year-old would be asked to do something different from his past.
While I don't think this is a great comparison one-for-one, a player with some similarities to Veesaar is former Celtic center Luke Kornet. Offensively, we saw how well Luke played out of the short rolls in Boston, and Veesaar can do that as well, while adding an outside shot. Looking at them defensively, the comparison works better, with both excelling at the fundamentals defensively and knowing how to use their length to disrupt offenses.
Something to keep an eye out for is Boston potentially needing to trade up for him. Boston has apparently been looking to move up in the draft, and given the center class, it could be to ensure they can land him.
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