Celtics to target Turner

[JHTruth]

Looks like he moves fine:
https://m.youtube.com/?#/watch?v=LLGeP0L6-CY

[Denis998]

How much would it realistically cost for us to move up to the 10th pick to get him? Miami doesn't need an extra big, and might be willing to trade down some. What would be a trade that is worthwhile for them and reasonable for us?

[Csfan1984]

I'd consider WCS or Turner a win in this draft.

Who am I kidding we're going to get Sam Dekker..

They probably trade up for Dekker too lol

[Future Celtics Owner]

How much would it realistically cost for us to move up to the 10th pick to get him? Miami doesn't need an extra big, and might be willing to trade down some. What would be a trade that is worthwhile for them and reasonable for us?

I think it would have to be around Avery Bradley, probably straight up. With Wade and his uncertainties it is a good move. Plus on defense they can have Avery defend the point and Dragic defend the 2.

[max215]

I'd be quite happy if we picked him up. A Bradley for Hood and Turner trade would be PERFECT.

I think that's where things get interesting.

Ainge loves Bradley. He's a leader on this team, a good young player on a good deal who Ainge won't just give away. But Turner is a top 10 talent who's dropping because of that gait. If all the info you have says he'll be fine and he's there at 12, would you be willing to make that trade?

Depends how much they like Young. A lot of potential versatility on that team. Ainge would be thinking long and hard about that trade. Just think about this..

Smart/Thomas
Turner/Hood
Crowder/Young/Turner
Sullinger/Olynyk
Zeller/Turner/Olynyk.

Smart can play the 1 and the 2, Turner can play the 1, 2 and 3, Hood can play the 2 or 3, Young can do the same, Crowder can play the 2, 3 and the small-ball 4. KO can play the 4 and the 5. Your hoping Myles Turner can get there as well. And there's still a lot of directions that team can go in both FA and trades. It would make sense for all involved, I'm just worried about losing AB in that locker room.

AB is a good player, one that is very valuable to a contender with a need at the 2, but that's not us. The way I look at it we could go with this lineup:

Smart/Thomas
Hood/FA or Draftee
Young/Crowder
FA/Sully or KO
Turner/Zeller

With the mass that Young has allegedly added he has legitimate 3 size, and Crowder would be a great backup for him. We can keep IT as a sparkplug off the bench and give Smart the reigns of the team. If we bring in either one of the superstar 4s or Monroe then this is a promising young team with a lot of room to grow. In this scenario ET and one of KO or Sully would be moved for some additional pieces.

[Future Celtics Owner]

I'd be quite happy if we picked him up. A Bradley for Hood and Turner trade would be PERFECT.

I think that's where things get interesting.

Ainge loves Bradley. He's a leader on this team, a good young player on a good deal who Ainge won't just give away. But Turner is a top 10 talent who's dropping because of that gait. If all the info you have says he'll be fine and he's there at 12, would you be willing to make that trade?

Depends how much they like Young. A lot of potential versatility on that team. Ainge would be thinking long and hard about that trade. Just think about this..

Smart/Thomas
Turner/Hood
Crowder/Young/Turner
Sullinger/Olynyk
Zeller/Turner/Olynyk.

Smart can play the 1 and the 2, Turner can play the 1, 2 and 3, Hood can play the 2 or 3, Young can do the same, Crowder can play the 2, 3 and the small-ball 4. KO can play the 4 and the 5. Your hoping Myles Turner can get there as well. And there's still a lot of directions that team can go in both FA and trades. It would make sense for all involved, I'm just worried about losing AB in that locker room.

AB is a good player, one that is very valuable to a contender with a need at the 2, but that's not us. The way I look at it we could go with this lineup:

Smart/Thomas
Hood/FA or Draftee
Young/Crowder
FA/Sully or KO
Turner/Zeller

With the mass that Young has allegedly added he has legitimate 3 size, and Crowder would be a great backup for him. We can keep IT as a sparkplug off the bench and give Smart the reigns of the team. If we bring in either one of the superstar 4s or Monroe then this is a promising young team with a lot of room to grow. In this scenario ET and one of KO or Sully would be moved for some additional pieces.

I would have James Young at the 2 and Hood at the 3. Yes James added muscle but he is still super cut with less that 5% body fat. He has stated that he plays better at the 2, and he should because he has an advantage over almost all of them with his 8'8'' standing reach and 7' wingspan. His length allows him to get shots over basically any other 2; which is great because all he needs is an inch and he will take a mile from you.

Also we may be able to get Lyles with the 16th pick, Upshaw with the 28th/33rd, and Rakeem Xmas and or Dakari Johnson/cliff Alexander.

[BDeCosta26]

I'd be quite happy if we picked him up. A Bradley for Hood and Turner trade would be PERFECT.

I think that's where things get interesting.

Ainge loves Bradley. He's a leader on this team, a good young player on a good deal who Ainge won't just give away. But Turner is a top 10 talent who's dropping because of that gait. If all the info you have says he'll be fine and he's there at 12, would you be willing to make that trade?

Depends how much they like Young. A lot of potential versatility on that team. Ainge would be thinking long and hard about that trade. Just think about this..

Smart/Thomas
Turner/Hood
Crowder/Young/Turner
Sullinger/Olynyk
Zeller/Turner/Olynyk.

Smart can play the 1 and the 2, Turner can play the 1, 2 and 3, Hood can play the 2 or 3, Young can do the same, Crowder can play the 2, 3 and the small-ball 4. KO can play the 4 and the 5. Your hoping Myles Turner can get there as well. And there's still a lot of directions that team can go in both FA and trades. It would make sense for all involved, I'm just worried about losing AB in that locker room.

AB is a good player, one that is very valuable to a contender with a need at the 2, but that's not us. The way I look at it we could go with this lineup:

Smart/Thomas
Hood/FA or Draftee
Young/Crowder
FA/Sully or KO
Turner/Zeller

With the mass that Young has allegedly added he has legitimate 3 size, and Crowder would be a great backup for him. We can keep IT as a sparkplug off the bench and give Smart the reigns of the team. If we bring in either one of the superstar 4s or Monroe then this is a promising young team with a lot of room to grow. In this scenario ET and one of KO or Sully would be moved for some additional pieces.

Bradley only turns 25 this year, he's still a couple years from his peak. Ainge loves Bradley so much because he has developed well and he sees him as that valuable piece to the next C's contender.

Now, Ainge ain't stupid. He knows he's a top-notch role player masquerading as a featured option, And he'll trade him in the right deal, but I really think it only happens IF one of their targets is available at 9 or 12 and the deal includes a young, capable replacement. That's why I think the Hood trade has merit. If they really like Turner (Which I think they do, he fits what they want perfectly), but will have to lose AB to get him, Hood is the kind of guy they'd want as well. He proved last year he can play in this league, he is a really good shooter, and is versatile enough to play the 2 and 3. If we make a deal with Charlotte at 9, I think it's more likely we use a big like Zeller in a trade up, but if we do use AB, they have Hairston as a guy in that same mold.

The thing is, I don't think we're willing to take a significant step back this year, so I don't think handing the offense to Smart is realistic, and ET would probably have to stay. He's a decent player who can find minutes on that team in multiple places so I would wanna keep him, but if we did move him you'd see a lot of the Thomas/Smart back-court and thus, less time for Young and Hood. Plus, I do think Young's long term position is at the 3 and if what they say about his newly added strength is true he has the size but I just don't think he has the defensive ability to play big minutes there yet. He has a size advantage at the two which will help him get his feet wet and cover some of his defensive lapses that he just won't have at the 3. Unless he proves otherwise, I think you play him more at the 2 this season and only at the 3 if it's a favorable match-up.

I think in that scenario your most likely candidate is Monroe, who really has to play the 5 to be at his best. Which is fine because I think Turner and him can both play some 4. So can Olynyk, and you need KO's shooting to take full advantage of Monroe's passing. So let's say your looking to move Sully, Maybe Zeller depending on if you sign a guy like Monroe or a guy like Love, ET is expendable so what are you looking to get for those guys? Assuming we keep our other picks, do you try to package them for another piece or any other thoughts about where you would go with that team THIS summer?

[Ilikesports17]

I think that Monroe complements Turner pretty well.

Both are good rebounders, Monroe can defend the 5 at a reasonable level, but doesnt block shots. Turner on the other hand looks like (if the weird leg issues are sorted out) he could defend the 4 and block shots. Monroe's offense all comes from the paint so having Turners ability to step out and hit jump shots means that offensively this duo would be great together and I think theyd do fine defensively as well, but they would struggle a bit defending the pick and roll. The other 2 guys I see as really nice fits next to Monroe would be Taj Gibson and Montrezl Harrel(if he seriously improves that jump shot)

I wouldnt draft someone to fit in with a FA we dont even have yet, but if we draft Turner the Greg Monroe signing would start to make even more sense for Boston.

Also Monroe is a really good passer which could help take advantage of Turners shot.

[max215]

I'd be quite happy if we picked him up. A Bradley for Hood and Turner trade would be PERFECT.

I think that's where things get interesting.

Ainge loves Bradley. He's a leader on this team, a good young player on a good deal who Ainge won't just give away. But Turner is a top 10 talent who's dropping because of that gait. If all the info you have says he'll be fine and he's there at 12, would you be willing to make that trade?

Depends how much they like Young. A lot of potential versatility on that team. Ainge would be thinking long and hard about that trade. Just think about this..

Smart/Thomas
Turner/Hood
Crowder/Young/Turner
Sullinger/Olynyk
Zeller/Turner/Olynyk.

Smart can play the 1 and the 2, Turner can play the 1, 2 and 3, Hood can play the 2 or 3, Young can do the same, Crowder can play the 2, 3 and the small-ball 4. KO can play the 4 and the 5. Your hoping Myles Turner can get there as well. And there's still a lot of directions that team can go in both FA and trades. It would make sense for all involved, I'm just worried about losing AB in that locker room.

AB is a good player, one that is very valuable to a contender with a need at the 2, but that's not us. The way I look at it we could go with this lineup:

Smart/Thomas
Hood/FA or Draftee
Young/Crowder
FA/Sully or KO
Turner/Zeller

With the mass that Young has allegedly added he has legitimate 3 size, and Crowder would be a great backup for him. We can keep IT as a sparkplug off the bench and give Smart the reigns of the team. If we bring in either one of the superstar 4s or Monroe then this is a promising young team with a lot of room to grow. In this scenario ET and one of KO or Sully would be moved for some additional pieces.

Bradley only turns 25 this year, he's still a couple years from his peak. Ainge loves Bradley so much because he has developed well and he sees him as that valuable piece to the next C's contender.

Now, Ainge ain't stupid. He knows he's a top-notch role player masquerading as a featured option, And he'll trade him in the right deal, but I really think it only happens IF one of their targets is available at 9 or 12 and the deal includes a young, capable replacement. That's why I think the Hood trade has merit. If they really like Turner (Which I think they do, he fits what they want perfectly), but will have to lose AB to get him, Hood is the kind of guy they'd want as well. He proved last year he can play in this league, he is a really good shooter, and is versatile enough to play the 2 and 3. If we make a deal with Charlotte at 9, I think it's more likely we use a big like Zeller in a trade up, but if we do use AB, they have Hairston as a guy in that same mold.

The thing is, I don't think we're willing to take a significant step back this year, so I don't think handing the offense to Smart is realistic, and ET would probably have to stay. He's a decent player who can find minutes on that team in multiple places so I would wanna keep him, but if we did move him you'd see a lot of the Thomas/Smart back-court and thus, less time for Young and Hood. Plus, I do think Young's long term position is at the 3 and if what they say about his newly added strength is true he has the size but I just don't think he has the defensive ability to play big minutes there yet. He has a size advantage at the two which will help him get his feet wet and cover some of his defensive lapses that he just won't have at the 3. Unless he proves otherwise, I think you play him more at the 2 this season and only at the 3 if it's a favorable match-up.

I think in that scenario your most likely candidate is Monroe, who really has to play the 5 to be at his best. Which is fine because I think Turner and him can both play some 4. So can Olynyk, and you need KO's shooting to take full advantage of Monroe's passing. So let's say your looking to move Sully, Maybe Zeller depending on if you sign a guy like Monroe or a guy like Love, ET is expendable so what are you looking to get for those guys? Assuming we keep our other picks, do you try to package them for another piece or any other thoughts about where you would go with that team THIS summer?

I'd probably use the remaining picks on high upside guys, so maybe Lyles at #16, Xmas and Upshaw with #28 and #33. We should try to maintain our flexibility for a mid-season trade if a superstar becomes available. I don't want to miss out on the KD sweepstakes because of stupid mistakes this off season. As for Turner, he's a good player and shows flashes that make it clear why he was a #2 overall pick, but his hero-ball syle of play doesn't work against real teams (because frankly, he wants to play like LeBron but is nowhere near as good as him) and is pretty inhibitive to Smart's prospects for growth on the offensive end. Right now I'd consider him a detriment to OUR team. While Turner does have a place in this league, much like AB, he should not be the focal point of a team. He has a great deal of value to many teams, just not ours.

[fairweatherfan]

I'd be thrilled.

Turner would have probably gone top 5, maybe higher, if he played anywhere but Texas.

Don't follow prospects closely but it's worth noting that this is pretty much the same way we got Avery Bradley where we did.  Though he of course wasn't a top-2 player in his class, he was ranked there with John Wall coming in to college.  Danny probably sees a similar opportunity here.

[A Future of Stevens]

While this seems like a typical DA smokescreen, I really hope that it isn't. Turner is the rare prospect who the Celtics won't have to sell the farm to get. In terms of risk, obviously banking on a 19 year old who runs awkwardly is problematic. However, I keep seeing most scouting reports say that the skill most likely to translate easily is the blocking shots aspect of his game. Worst case scenario we add a shot blocker who gets minutes solely for that, and best case scenario (and I mean absolute best) he could be one of the best two way bigs to come out of the class.

Also, when a guy with 9'4" standing reach comes along, who has a very good shooting touch, and can hit his free throws, AND BLOCK SHOTS, you shouldn't look the other way.

Just my two cents.

Blocking shots is such a tiny part of playing good defense.  I just can't get as excited about it as you are.

To me, the ability to get in proper position, quickly and correctly, is THE most important aspect of playing defense in basketball.  You have to do that ALL the time you are on defense.  A blocked shot happens just a couple of times a game.

Yea, I guess I got carried away with the blocking shots aspect of my post. I fully understand that someone like Marc Gasol is a much better defender than say a deandre jordan (falls for fakes all the time, and leaves his feet.)

I couldn't really tell from your post, but is it the blocking shots part of the game you can't get excited about or Turner? The blocking of shots part I understand, but if it is Turner I am curious as to why. From watching a decent amount of tape on the kid, while he does appear to be slightly out of position on defense some times, it doesn't appear to be an insurmountable flaw to his game.

I think as he grows into his new and improved stride, a lot of the quickness and fluidity problems might fade. It is also reported that he is a gym rat (not a newsflash because it seems like every prospect nowadays is a "gym rat"), so he might be able to fix some of his defensive positioning flaws. Until that happens, he has that absurd length to bail him out a bit. These forums (myself included) went nuts over Upshaw, in part because of his 9'5" "Golden Standard" standing reach. Turner has only 1 inch less on that reach, while already arguably being a better basketball player.

So do you guys think its possible/likely that he can become a better fundamental defender? Or do you think he will just rely on his length to bail himself out?