Chad Ford's First Mock Draft

[winsomme]

i'm not sure that drafting an over-seas guy plays to DAs strength. he is so good at scouting the college game and there will be some really interesting prospects available at our pick that actually could fill a need too.

with the NBDL, stashing a guy in Europe for a couple of years is not as necessary when you don't have a spot on the active roster right away....

i guess it depends on how excited DA is about the prospect. if he is really high on the player, that is the most important.

personally, at this early stage, i am looking to see how prospects like:

Devon Jefferson
Bill walker
Courtney Lee
Devon Hardin
kyle Weaver
Ty Lawson
brandon rush

and others, do in workouts. some of these guys should be there at #30 and i find them all intriguing.

[Zarex]

Do we really need help ASAP?  We are in the Conference Finals!  The rotation is already a bit much for Doc to handle.  Euros arent as tough to project as they once were, and its one of the safer bets to get talent so low.

Obviously, we're nit-picking.  The C's should be able to compete for the title next year (and possibly the year after) with only minor tweaking of the roster.  But a few team weaknesses that were hidden during the fantastic regular season have bubbled up during two grueling 7 game series.  The C's have 1)a dearth of young players with size 2) limited depth behind Rondo, 3) a relative lack of athleticism and, 4) in the Allen brothers a possible major weakness at the 2.  The last three points could be resolved, in part, by Gabe Pruitt's development, but it's interesting to discuss how they will be addressed going forward through the draft and free agency.    

[Gainesville Celtic]

Chad Ford:

The Celtics don't need rookies right now, and Tomic is stuck in a contract for the next few years overseas. They can afford to let him develop and hope in a few years he can be a building block.

I've never understood this thinking (echoed by some here) --- that if you've got a team like the C's (i.e. mature talent) you "don't need rookies".

IMO that EXACTLY when you need rookies. If Ainge doesn't start restocking the cupboard now, you get real old, real quick. It's when you're a super young team like the C's last year or the Bulls of the last couple years that you could argue you don't need MORE rookies.

so the answer is DEVON HARDIN ---- you can never have too much size IMO.

Bill Walker, Joey Dorsey, Courtney Lee, Richard Hendrix and Roy Hibbert are the other guys way behind Hardin on my draft wish list.

[BudweiserCeltic]

I'm still praying for a tall sg/sf that can defend, hit jumpers, and drive hard to the basket... there seems to be quite a few in this draft. I hope we can get one of them.

I'm a huge Ray Allen fan, but if he doesn't pan out in the next couple of years, this sg/sf insurance could let us trade Ray without sweating it too much. And I still see our sg/sf situation being a bit thin.

I still think that our PG/C situation should be addressed via trade or free-agency.

[Evantime34]

I completely agree with the sentiment that our immediate needs will be met by free agents more than draft picks. This year our bench needs were filled by free agents who only had an idea of how good the Celtics would be (besides Cassell, and PJ). This year's crop of free agents at the very least will be able to look towards the best record in the NBA and at the very least the eastern conference finals to entice them. My point is that while everyone has been happy with our free agents this year, next years group of free agents (who will probably take less money to win) should blow last years guys out of the water thus satisfying our needs.
As far as drafting a euro and stashing him overseas I'm not a fan of that. I'm under the impression that 99% of the euros who succeed in this league at least come to the us right away. Scola is a good example but I don't think you can throw Splitter on the list until he actually comes here. The last player to get stashed away and come to the US with a real great game in my opinion was Sabonis. I could be completely wrong in my thinking and lots of players that were stashed for a few years came over and contributed strongly but none currently come to mind. If anyone knows any such names I would appreciate to know them

[thechief22212]

i still say the celts should make a run at alexander. trade this years first along with a future first. kid could easily impact immediately and slide into a starters role whenever called upon

[Ersatz]

I really hope Bill Walker falls to us. Really like that guy to develop into a solid, if not spectacular, swingman in a few years. Learning under PP and RA for a few years would be just the ticket.

[Jeff]

I love the draft as much as anyone and I see how the lottry brings up the subject, but man, this is the farthest thing from my mind right now

we have to...

a. see how far we go
b. figure out who is in our plans and who isn't (Tony, House, Sam/PJ, etc.)
c. let the draft board settle down a little

and then maybe I'll have some inkling about who might be available at 30

and at the end of the day, I could see Ainge trading it for 2 second rounders or in a package to pick up a more veteran player that fills a role on this team next year

wake me in about 3-4 weeks for this 

[BudweiserCeltic]

I love the draft as much as anyone and I see how the lottry brings up the subject, but man, this is the farthest thing from my mind right now

we have to...

a. see how far we go
b. figure out who is in our plans and who isn't (Tony, House, Sam/PJ, etc.)
c. let the draft board settle down a little

and then maybe I'll have some inkling about who might be available at 30

and at the end of the day, I could see Ainge trading it for 2 second rounders or in a package to pick up a more veteran player that fills a role on this team next year

wake me in about 3-4 weeks for this 

Lol, I've been itching to start a thread about free-agents coming up, just to get my mind off this Detroit series... it's clogging up my mind and I need a break from it.  But been afraid to do so because I'm sure a ton of you guys here will murder me for thinking ahead while in the middle of the playoffs lol.

[Chris]

I love that Ford has us taking Tomic at 30.  He is the perfect option for us in that scenario, because he would allow us to save a Roster spot (and salary) for a couple years, to fill in with veterans, and then we could get a guy who has potentially high lottery talent when he is ready to come over.

Right now, here is my top 5 guys who could conceivably be available at 30 (in no particular order), for the C's to take.

1. Ante Tomic
2. Brandon Rush (he could step in immediately, and be a good defender and shooter on the wing...he would be a big upgrade over Tony Allen IMO).
3. Bill Walker (Way too much talent to pass up...he could be a star in the league, or a complete bust...I am guessing star though)
4. Chris Douglas-Roberts (very underrated.  Has the midrange game to be a very successful starting guard in the league.)
5. Courtney Lee (similar to CDR...just a talented scorer.  Would immediately upgrade our bench scoring)

[winsomme]

I love that Ford has us taking Tomic at 30.  He is the perfect option for us in that scenario, because he would allow us to save a Roster spot (and salary) for a couple years, to fill in with veterans, and then we could get a guy who has potentially high lottery talent when he is ready to come over.

Right now, here is my top 5 guys who could conceivably be available at 30 (in no particular order), for the C's to take.

1. Ante Tomic
2. Brandon Rush (he could step in immediately, and be a good defender and shooter on the wing...he would be a big upgrade over Tony Allen IMO).
3. Bill Walker (Way too much talent to pass up...he could be a star in the league, or a complete bust...I am guessing star though)
4. Chris Douglas-Roberts (very underrated.  Has the midrange game to be a very successful starting guard in the league.)
5. Courtney Lee (similar to CDR...just a talented scorer.  Would immediately upgrade our bench scoring)

i like CDR too, but i worry about him from a strength standpoint. but then again, i thought the same thing about Kevin Martin...

i am a big fan of Courtney Lee.....

[amenhotep04]

I really believe we'll sign and trade Tony this year.  I wonder how far we could move up in the draft with our pick + Tony.  If we do not move up in the draft, I could still see him being moved.  If we draft someone like Rush, then I think the writing's on the wall for TA.  Either way, Pruett is going to be somewhere in the rotation next year.  Tony won't be around.

[Chris]

I really believe we'll sign and trade Tony this year.  I wonder how far we could move up in the draft with our pick + Tony.  If we do not move up in the draft, I could still see him being moved.  If we draft someone like Rush, then I think the writing's on the wall for TA.  Either way, Pruett is going to be somewhere in the rotation next year.  Tony won't be around.

maybe to 29??

Seriously though, why would anyone sign and trade for Tony Allen, and actually give up value (and why would the C's take on extra salary, unless it is legit value)?

Tony is a guy who has yet to prove anything in this league.  He has been as inconsistent as they come.

If a team wanted him that much, they could just give him a decent contract (say, 3 years, $10 million), and the C's likely wouldn't even match it.

[Eeyore III]

I like Tomic too--although I'm tempted to defer to Brick in this area.  I pretty much agree with Chris's assessment, except I'm a Bill Walker naysayer.  If Hendrix measures big, I'd put him on the list in place of Walker.

[Scribbles]

i'm not sure that drafting an over-seas guy plays to DAs strength. he is so good at scouting the college game and there will be some really interesting prospects available at our pick that actually could fill a need too.

with the NBDL, stashing a guy in Europe for a couple of years is not as necessary when you don't have a spot on the active roster right away....

i guess it depends on how excited DA is about the prospect. if he is really high on the player, that is the most important.

personally, at this early stage, i am looking to see how prospects like:

Devon Jefferson
Bill walker
Courtney Lee
Devon Hardin
kyle Weaver
Ty Lawson
brandon rush

and others, do in workouts. some of these guys should be there at #30 and i find them all intriguing.

I like your list.  I'd love to see us grab Weaver or Hardin with our 1st round pick.  Wasn't Hardin supposed to be a potential lottery pick a year or two ago?  I've seen Weaver play a few times.  He just makes it look so easy out there like he isn't even trying.  He just seems to glide when hes out on the court. I think both of those guys could be solid picks for us.