One of the things that really frustrated me recently about how the Boston sports media has covered the Celtics is that so many people keep insisting that the C's picks after #3 are "essentially worthless".
Really? Consider this...
Joaquim Noah just signed for $18m per year. Mosgov will get $16m per year. Ante Zizic, meanwhile, if he were to join the league as the 23rd pick, would make $1.15m in his first year. Just to take an example.
Nicolas Batum will be paid $24m per for the next 5 years. Jaylen Brown? As the 3rd pick he'll be paid around $4m per for the next four years.
We could go on and on with this but you get the point. All draft picks -- even late firsts and second rounders -- have value. Right now every team's got cap space, and even next year we might be in a similar NBA environment. But teams will soon come to the reality that the cap is real, and cheap role players that fit under the cap will be hugely important.
The Celtics can't win a title without a superstar, we all know that. But you also can't win a title without role players, and if you want to compete for years, those picks (as well as the young guys already under contract) are going to be huge down the line.
Topic: Let free agency be a reminder of the value of draft picks (Read 463 times)