2026 For Posterity

[CFAN38]

I want to create this thread as an easy look back at who where you hoping for at #27?


On my board I had the following

#16 Meleek Thomas
#18 Chris Cenac Jr

next tier down

#20 Koa Peat


At pick #40

I had

#34 Henri Veesaar
#36 Emanuel Sharpe

I would have taken Sharpe but can understand the logic in the Mitchell pick. I also like that Uzan was picked up as a UDFA. He didnt crack my top 60 but has the potential to provide value on a 2-way

[Roy H.]

The guy I hoped would drop was Lopez, and I also liked Vassar for us.

[Who]

I want to create this thread as an easy look back at who where you hoping for at #27?


On my board I had the following

#16 Meleek Thomas
#18 Chris Cenac Jr

next tier down

#20 Koa Peat

Why Meleek Thomas? What do you like about him?

[Celtics2021]

Peet was my guy who was still available.  Cenac was my second choice, although I put Peat in a higher tier because I think his floor is much higher.  But not much to complain about this year.

Tarris Reed, who was a popular choice here, was emphatically not my guy, so I was glad he was off the board by the time it got to us.

[Who]

Tarris Reed, who was a popular choice here, was emphatically not my guy, so I was glad he was off the board by the time it got to us.

What did you not like about his game?

Spurs took him, didn't they? Or was it Denver? I wrote his name for both teams! Oops. Update: Draft thread has him in San Antonio. Traded by DEN to SAS.

[jambr380]

Since I don't really follow college basketball, I was just along for the ride tbh. When Philon was dropping, I was getting a little excited. I am satisfied enough with Cenac rather than a higher floor player. At #27, I am fine with boom or bust and it would be really exciting to see a guy like that actually really hit for us.

[CFAN38]

I want to create this thread as an easy look back at who where you hoping for at #27?


On my board I had the following

#16 Meleek Thomas
#18 Chris Cenac Jr

next tier down

#20 Koa Peat

Why Meleek Thomas? What do you like about him?

Good size for a PG / decent size for a combo guard (6'3 190 6'7ws) about the same as D White. He is a knock down 3pt shooter who I thought showed real flashes as a P&R ball handler. His D need refining but plays hard and really work on the ball. Is screen navigation always impressed me. He also gets a bump from me for being the #11 player on the ESPN 100 and a Calapari guard. Calapari's track record with highly ranked freshman guards in the draft is really impressive.

[Celtics2021]

Tarris Reed, who was a popular choice here, was emphatically not my guy, so I was glad he was off the board by the time it got to us.

What did you not like about his game?

Spurs took him, didn't they? Or was it Denver? I wrote his name for both teams! Oops. Update: Draft thread has him in San Antonio. Traded by DEN to SAS.

I think his upside is backup center, and I do not think he would be a quality one as a rookie.  He might hang around the NBA for a while because he is tall, but I do not expect him to ever do anything noteworthy, and I like more upside potential from my 1st round picks.  I definitely prefer Cenac in those regards.

[CFAN38]

Another thought to leave here and reflect on.


In the draft process I for what ever reason never gave Cenac a ton of time. Had him ranked in the top 20 but early in the process I always assumed he would return to Houston and never really got past his size, blue chip status, and youth all making him a clear top 20 guy.

Diving into him further I have come away with what I think is an interesting comp (especially given recent FA speculation)

Is Chris Cenac in the same archetype of center as Kevon Looney? IE Is Cenac's most likely outcome to develop into a 6'11 version of Looney?

Looney and Cenac both went into college as elite blue chip prospects and showed signs of the perimeter skills that are prerequisites for NBA all-star/stars but not to a level where it reflected on their draft status (Looney 30th, Cenac 27th). Both players elite college skill was their rebounding, Looney went on to make this his NBA calling card.

Do the Celtics take a similar developmental path with Cenac? Looney in his 3rd season was a productive contributor to a championship and in his 7th season he started for the Warriors championship team. I will be curious to see how he is used in the summer league as this may be an indicator if developmentally they are more focused on him as a screener, rim runner, and rebounder or as a floor spacer and off the dribble creator.

I personally I much more bullish on his ceiling if he can use his superior size (2" taller, 20lbs heavier, and 2.5" longer) in a Looney like role.