The deadline to withdraw for College players just ended last night. Three names that came down the to wire that could have interesting implications for the Celtics.
Koa Peat, he stayed in after a lot of speculation and I have read reports projecting him 15-25. The general consensus is that his shot is broken and looked terrible at the combine. His trainers are in the process of rebuilding it. He is my ultimate draft enigma. He hits my can't miss prerequisites as a 5 Star recruit (espn gave him a 93), has been a key team USA member (played 27 games from 14-17 avg 14pt 6rb and won 4 golds), and has an elite physical profile (NFL strong Dad and brother NFL lineman). What scares me is the archetype at 6'7 (barefoot) 245lbs with a 6'11.25" he is Julius Randle sized. Randle also came into the league as a non shooter but has developed to a point where its an inconsistent part of his game. Early in the college season he was all but a lottery lock now there is a strong chance he goes in the 20s. I do think he makes for an interesting prospect should he fall to #27 or if the Cs can make a low asset cost trade up into the higher 20s for him. I trust the Cs staff to get the most out of him.
Allen Graves, he is the analytics darling of the draft despite only playing 22mpg off the bench so Santa Clara. Most draft pundits had him pegged to go to LSU or Duke in an attempt to make the Yaxel like jump up in competition to lock himself into next years lottery. He instead stayed in this draft. He is really locked into a true PF size at 6'6.75" 225lbs with a 7' WS without great lateral quickness. The idea with Graves is his stat profile is so intriguing he becomes a ceiling swing his per 36 stats: 41% from 3 on 4.2 attempts, 10.4rb, 2.9 ast, 1.5blks, 3 stl, and only 1.1 TO. The Stocks of 4.5 per 36 is especially interesting. I see think the ultimate vision for Graves is that he gets stronger and is this eras Boris Diaw. A guy who plays winning basketball and fills every corner of the stat sheet. I personally am lower on him out of fear of the physical tools limiting him too much.
Meleek Thomas,he waited till the absolute last minute but I was happy to see him declare. I have said this before but he would be my choice at guard for the Celtics. He was a little smaller than I had hoped but still measured almost identical to Derrick White. His mix of off ball shooting and the ability to run pick and role makes it easy to see him playing along side any combination of JT/JB/White/PP. I also really came away high on his on ball defense and screen navigation. He has work to do as a team defender but I trust him on the ball right away. He is also another blue chip 5 star guy (93 on espn) who never played for team USA but attended the mini camps. My flawed but favorite predictor for Meleek is Calipari, the track record of his guards is so good that I would be scared to bet against it. I will not be at all shocked if in three years he is playing Immanuel Quickley level basketball and cracking the lottery in a redraft.
Topic: Early look at the 2026 draft (Read 140380 times)