I'm assuming it's Fultz' agent who said this, and it makes complete sense. Boston has way too much depth at the 1, 2 and 3 - and three of the top 5 prospects are PGs.
There is really only one player in the top 5 who could play minutes at the NBA PF spot, and that's Tatum. So if he got drafted by the Celtics, he'd have a very good shot of getting minutes.
If Fultz or Ball get drafted by Boston, then I seriously doubt either of those guys is stealing a starting spot from Bradley or Thomas - meaning they probably come off the bench. Most likely either the pick (or Smart) would be traded because there just aren't enough minutes to go around in Boston's perimeter.
Wow, your posting has really deteriorated. There have been multiple articles where both Fultz and Thomas said they'd have no problem playing with each other. Fultz recently said he'd love to play for the Celtics. He has shown he is willing to be interviewed and workout with the Celtics.
Are you gonna ignore these like when I said something about Sullinger's numbers prior to last season and you replied with arguments about last season?!
Like when Dunn's agent apparently said Dunn didn't want to come to Boston due to the bloated backcourt, and then Dunn himself later went on to say he'd love to play in Boston?
Fultz is being looked at as the almost unanimous #1 pick in this draft. Boston is going to the Eastern Conference Finals behind their starting backcourt of Isaiah Thomas (29 PPG this year) and Avery Bradley (longest tenured Celtic and 16 PPG all-defensive first treamer).
They have Marcus Smart playing 6th man minutes for the past 2-3 years (~28 MPG). Lets say those guys all play 28 MPG apiece- that's already all 84 of a possible 96 minutes at the guard positions taken up by those three guys.
That's not even factoring in Rozier, who has been very effective in the playoffs and has proven he's worthy of minutes. But lets say Boston finds a deal and trades Rozier - that still leaves only 12 MPG available for Fultz.
You really think your #1 pick in the draft is going to be happy playing some 12 MPG off the bench?
Ok, so Smart can get some minutes at SF - sure. But then what do you do with your perennial starter (Jae Crowder) and last years #3 pick (Jaylen Brown)?
Unless you can find a trade for one of those key guys, how can you possible find sufficient playing time for Fultz when you already have Thomas, Bradley, Smart, Crowder and Brown all sharing minutes on the perimeter?
Jaylen Brown played very solidly this year considering his age and how raw he was supposed to be. I've got little doubt that had he gone to a crappier team and played 30 MPG, he could easily averaged double figures and would have probably been an All-Rookie first team selection. Instead he was buried on the Celtics and got mostly ignore throughout the season while playing some 18 MPG for a #1 seed.
If Boston drafts Fultz and plays HIM 18 MPG as well, then this could be the first time in history that a team has drafted two top 3 picks in back-to-back years and failed to play either of the more then 20 MPG. Fultz's shot at ROTY would pretty much go out the window by default.
Basically, if Boston takes Fultz, then they need to trade somebody - and who are you going to trade? Thomas, an All-Star and top 3 scorer? Bradley, who is arguably the biggest locker room leader of the team and excellent two-way player? Crowder? Brown, the top-3 pick with sky high upside? Smart, the ultimate crowd and coach favourite?
Trading any of those guys to make bench space for an unproven rookie is a big risk.
It's a bit of a messy situation to be brutally honest - albeit I'm sure it's a problem any coach / GM would be happy to have.
Topic: Rumor: Agents Fearful For Rookie Clients Drafted By "Loaded" Boston (Read 20033 times)