So the Celtics traded away their starting PG... What about Yam Madar?

[W8ting2McHale]

Wouldn't be surprised if Madar comes over on a two-way deal and serves as potential regular-season depth, but Smart and Pritchard are going to be the top two point guards in some order (barring another major trade). I do think they need to find a playable third point guard who can push Pritchard for minutes and play when there are injuries - maybe you get Kris Dunn from Atlanta for cheap (Carsen swap?) If you eat his contract with an exception.

Zero chance he comes on a two way deal. ZERO. He makes more money in Israel. He isn’t going to give up both the money and the playing time to come to NBA if he knows it isn’t available. I find it unlikely he’ll be on the Cs next year due to his current contract situation. Maybe the season after, especially if there’s a path to more playing time as well should Smart not be retained.

Do you have any source that says what his Israeli salary is?  I can’t find it myself.

I don’t know what his current contract pays, but his Israeli team is demanding $700k for the buyout; so whatever it is, it’s a lot more than what a 2-way or G-league contract pays.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/heavy.com/sports/boston-celtics/yam-madar-danny-ainge-draft-nba/amp/

[Celtics4ever]

Madar’s selection in the 2020 draft was, in some sense, a matter of happenstance. Back in July of 2019, Madar participated in the Under-20 European Championships, an event attended by numerous NBA scouts and executives looking to evaluate Israel’s superstar prospect, 6-foot-9 forward Deni Avdija. Avdija would go on to win MVP of the tournament and be selected 9th overall by the Washington Wizards in the 2020 draft.

But the surprise of the event was Madar, who, in seven games, averaged 15.9 points, 7.7 assists and shot 53.1% from the field and 47.6% from the 3-point line. He was selected to the All-Tournament team that July and only four months later by the Celtics in the NBA draft.

So here was the stat line of Deni Avdija aka the Superstar Prospect that drafted last year.

PPG  6.3

TRB   4.9

AST    1.2

FG%  41.7

That ought to put into context the Yam Madar's league quality.   I am all for giving him a try out but don't expect much folks....

FG3%  31.5

FT%  64.4

eFG%  50.2

PER  7.6




https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/a/avdijde01.html

[vjcsmoke]

Actually if you look at year 3 of each player's development, Madar looks like the superior prospect.  I believe Avidja got more hype because he plays a position where he can score more - SF and he took away MVP of the FIBA U20 tournament in 19-20.  BTW Yam Madar's team actually won that tournament, with him playing a pivotal role, chipping in 15.9 points 7.7 assists and 1.4 steals per game.

Avidja year 3:                  Games Minutes  PPG   2P      3P    FT    TR     ST     TO    Assists   Blocks  VAL
2019-20   M. Tel-Aviv       28   27.1         13.5  67%   39%   58%   6.1   0.8   1.9   2.6         0.9   17.4

Madar Year 3:                  Games Minutes  PPG   2P      3P    FT    TR     ST     TO    Assists   Blocks  VAL
2020-21   Hapoel TA         30   33.2         17.1  50%   41%   83%   3.0   1.3   2.9   5.2         0.4   18.1

But Yam Madar improved on a base package that centered more on defense and playmaking at year 2, and evolved into a complete offensive player, adding scoring and outside shooting to his package and improving even more the ability to get his teammates involved in the offense by year 3, earning the Captaincy of his team.

There's no reason to think that Madar won't continue to grow in the right environment.  And if you're complaining that our current point guards are too small and don't play defense, then Madar has got them beat in that department.  His NBA comp is Patrick Beverly because of his pesky defense.  Although Yam is bigger 6'3 180 to Beverly's 6'1 172 measurement at the NBA Combine.

Here's a video scouting report talking about Madar in year 2, talking about his strengths as a defender but his need to improve his offensive game.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cGgz4fFdFto

Here's a scouting report talking up Madar's strengths:

"What really makes Madar a special defender is his lateral quickness. He works incredibly hard on defense and is able to fight over screens and stay in front of defenders. While he is still prone to mistakes taking risks and getting himself out of position, he is a very plus on-ball defender and a complete pest that is able to bother ball handlers with immense pressure.

Another strength of Madar is, well, his strength. As a relatively small guard at 180 pounds, you would think he would be attacked on switches. While it is not impossible that Madar gets targeted on switches with teams trying to exploit his lack of size. Madar, however, has shown that he is a physical enough defender to handle switches on to bigger players in the post."