Well draft night is going to be fun ! Don't forget Lottery night!

[footey]

All the bad teams other than the Nets are motivated to lose, so I predict that the pick slides to like a 7-8 pick. Just not realistic that it will be top 5.  Not sure what value that will give us as a trading chip. Not much.

[celticinorlando]

But there is no way Boston keeps all 3 first round picks..just not enough room on the team. Brooklyn pick is going to net a top 5 player OR be traded for a good vet..that has value..

Could see them dumping one or both of the second and third first rounders...but think they keep one of them

It's very probable that one or more of the firsts could be guys stashed overseas for a year or two, including a potential top-5 pick in Dragan Bender.

God I hope they don't waste the jewel of the Garnett/Pierce deal on Bender. That guy has bust written all over him

And if this pick falls out of the top 5...boy..there just isn't much out there. Draft is weak beyond measure

[max215]

All the bad teams other than the Nets are motivated to lose, so I predict that the pick slides to like a 7-8 pick. Just not realistic that it will be top 5.  Not sure what value that will give us as a trading chip. Not much.

Have you looked at the standings or watched the Nets recently? This is such a tired and faulty argument, it's shocking people still try to use it.

[rondohondo]

he can probably package the bos and Dal pick to move up to around 15 , but those picks won't have value trying to package with the Brk pick if it is out of the top 5 .

[mef730]

All the bad teams other than the Nets are motivated to lose, so I predict that the pick slides to like a 7-8 pick. Just not realistic that it will be top 5.  Not sure what value that will give us as a trading chip. Not much.

I disagree. There are 26-30 games left. The Nets are ahead of Minnesota by three games and the Pelicans (who are still working off all the games they lost due to injuries) by 6.5. Statistically, it is highly unlikely that Minnesota slides that much, and it would take a disaster for the Pelicans to "catch" the Nets. I think we can comfortably say that the Nets are going to be the fourth worst team. In theory, I could create a scenario where Minnesota catches them, but I could also create a scenario where the Lakers catch them, just as easily.

Mike

[Irish Stew]

IMO this was an opportunity lost. The advantage of having more draft assets than you can reasonably use is not to stock teams in Maine and Europe but to give you an opportunity to overpay, if necessary, for those players that actually will make a difference. These difference makers do not include guys like Rozier or Hunter, similar to the kind of players we will be bringing in with our 8 draft picks. Even if the Brooklyn picks result in three more players with talent levels similar to Smart's, we will not be a contender.

[alldaboston]

But there is no way Boston keeps all 3 first round picks..just not enough room on the team. Brooklyn pick is going to net a top 5 player OR be traded for a good vet..that has value..

Could see them dumping one or both of the second and third first rounders...but think they keep one of them

It's very probable that one or more of the firsts could be guys stashed overseas for a year or two, including a potential top-5 pick in Dragan Bender.

God I hope they don't waste the jewel of the Garnett/Pierce deal on Bender. That guy has bust written all over him

And if this pick falls out of the top 5...boy..there just isn't much out there. Draft is weak beyond measure

Agreed. Not a fan of bender. I'd even say trade it if it falls out of the top 2. I don't watch a ton of college ball, but it seems to me the big prizes are Simmons and Ingram. Haven't seen/heard great things about brown, and dunn is redundant.

[Dino Pitino]

IMO this was an opportunity lost. The advantage of having more draft assets than you can reasonably use is not to stock teams in Maine and Europe but to give you an opportunity to overpay, if necessary, for those players that actually will make a difference. These difference makers do not include guys like Rozier or Hunter, similar to the kind of players we will be bringing in with our 8 draft picks. Even if the Brooklyn picks result in three more players with talent levels similar to Smart's, we will not be a contender.

If we wind up with four Smarts, so long as they play different positions, that might be the best defense in NBA history. Pretty sure we'd be a contender in that case.

[nickagneta]

Whether the Nets land with the second to worse odds or 5th worse odds, the Celtics have an excellent shot at a top pick. I am not sure the draft has ever had only the top three worst teams end up with the top three picks. Teams with the 3rd - 7th best chances have consistently gotten number one picks.

Also, regarding an after the top Ayer the draft is weak draft, please remember that the best player in the NBA was in a similar draft and he was chosen 7th.

[Evantime34]

I don't want to see more than 3 rookies on the team next year. I'm confident that Danny will be able to consolidate the picks by trading up, trading out (for future picks) or selecting draft and stash players.

If the Brooklyn pick is outside the top 3, I think Danny will feverishly try to move it for a guy like Blake, Love or Boogie. If a deal for one of those players goes down I expect the C's to be giving up multiple players which would make the roster crunch less daunting.

I would also be fine if the Celtics select Bender, don't bring him over right away then select two rookies to bring over this year.

[Irish Stew]

IMO this was an opportunity lost. The advantage of having more draft assets than you can reasonably use is not to stock teams in Maine and Europe but to give you an opportunity to overpay, if necessary, for those players that actually will make a difference. These difference makers do not include guys like Rozier or Hunter, similar to the kind of players we will be bringing in with our 8 draft picks. Even if the Brooklyn picks result in three more players with talent levels similar to Smart's, we will not be a contender.

If we wind up with four Smarts, so long as they play different positions, that might be the best defense in NBA history. Pretty sure we'd be a contender in that case.

What I mean by "talent level" is different than skill set. Smart is a good player, but not an All-Star and that makes you a middle of the pack playoff team. As far as making us a contender: A team of Marcus Smart skill set guys at all positions would be the best defensive team in the NBA and an historically bad team on offense and, thus, not really a contender IMO.

[Dino Pitino]

IMO this was an opportunity lost. The advantage of having more draft assets than you can reasonably use is not to stock teams in Maine and Europe but to give you an opportunity to overpay, if necessary, for those players that actually will make a difference. These difference makers do not include guys like Rozier or Hunter, similar to the kind of players we will be bringing in with our 8 draft picks. Even if the Brooklyn picks result in three more players with talent levels similar to Smart's, we will not be a contender.

If we wind up with four Smarts, so long as they play different positions, that might be the best defense in NBA history. Pretty sure we'd be a contender in that case.

What I mean by "talent level" is different than skill set. Smart is a good player, but not an All-Star and that makes you a middle of the pack playoff team. As far as making us a contender: A team of Marcus Smart skill set guys at all positions would be the best defensive team in the NBA and an historically bad team on offense and, thus, not really a contender IMO.

It's his second season. He's 21. He's played 101 games. It would be absurdly premature to judge him as capped at Good But Not All Star Material, to permanently rate his offense as Bad, especially when in the last 11 of those 101 games he's been shooting 43% from three on 5 attempts a game. Forget pre-judging him and keep watching him with an open mind, because he's been showing that he's capable of becoming a good offensive player in addition to already being a great defensive player. Those kind of players make All Star games. Those kind of players make All-NBA teams. Those kind of players would be amazing to find another three times in the draft.