"Best player available"

[ballin]

It's a bogus drafting strategy. There, I said it. I know it has become in vogue to draft the "best player available" regardless of position, but that is a recipe for disaster when there are no trade partners who want what you have. "Let's see, a guard who is undersized and can't shoot - surely I can flip him no problem!" Ridiculous. Ainge might be right that he was the best player available at 16 - but when you HAVE to trade to get rid of the logjam, and WHEN ALREADY WE'VE SEEN THAT NOBOSY WANTS MARCUS FREAKING SMART - you have to realize nobody will want rozier. How stupid can you be? It's a waste of a draft pick.

Gee, reminds me of David Kahn's defense of his drafting strategy.

Lastly, can Ainge acknowledge two things: 1) shooting matters unless you're a transcendent player like peak Rondo 2) it's moronic to draft "shooters" that can't shoot. Look at RJ Hunters' percentages and tell me it's something to write home about. There's a reason James Young couldn't sniff the floor last year.

[cb8883]

I agree that no one wants Banks 2.0 for obvious reasons. But I agree you need to take BPA. That's why Randle was the pick for the Celtics last year. Absolutely blew it. Just like BPA year before that was Greek Freak and Danny took KO because he likes floor spacing shooters that have no true NBA position. Except of course his guards which employs no shooters except for the volume shooting savant IT who ruined our entire season.

[GryphMinuteMan]

It's a bogus drafting strategy. There, I said it. I know it has become in vogue to draft the "best player available" regardless of position, but that is a recipe for disaster when there are no trade partners who want what you have. "Let's see, a guard who is undersized and can't shoot - surely I can flip him no problem!" Ridiculous. Ainge might be right that he was the best player available at 16 - but when you HAVE to trade to get rid of the logjam, and WHEN ALREADY WE'VE SEEN THAT NOBOSY WANTS MARCUS FREAKING SMART - you have to realize nobody will want rozier. How stupid can you be? It's a waste of a draft pick.

Gee, reminds me of David Kahn's defense of his drafting strategy.

Lastly, can Ainge acknowledge two things: 1) shooting matters unless you're a transcendent player like peak Rondo 2) it's moronic to draft "shooters" that can't shoot. Look at RJ Hunters' percentages and tell me it's something to write home about. There's a reason James Young couldn't sniff the floor last year.

I have no problem taking the best player available if that is indeed the case. Terry Rozier at 16 is not the case.

[Snakehead]

I agree that no one wants Banks 2.0 for obvious reasons. But I agree you need to take BPA. That's why Randle was the pick for the Celtics last year. Absolutely blew it. Just like BPA year before that was Greek Freak and Danny took KO because he likes floor spacing shooters that have no true NBA position. Except of course his guards which employs no shooters except for the volume shooting savant IT who ruined our entire season.

Right.  Smart was awful and Randle has taken the league by storm!

[iadera]

Ainge just did NOTHING last night! Of all options and contacts with other teams he did nothing but -ZERO!

[incoherent]

Ainge just did NOTHING last night! Of all options and contacts with other teams he did nothing but -ZERO!

Tell me what did he turn down, what option? What team wanted to trade with us and what were they offering?

I highly doubt you can answer this since you literally have no idea what Danny's "options" were. None of us do.

[littleteapot]

I 100% agree on the shooting thing - yes shooting can be taught, but we can't just assume that everyone will learn to shoot.

In this case I think I would have gone for one of the big men that were still available (honestly don't know any of them well enough to say which) but its tough. I think BPA makes the most sense if you think you're taking a bench player anyway.

Did Ainge just think this draft was terrible?

[saltlover]

Did Ainge just think this draft was terrible?

The general consensus was that the talent was relatively flat after around the 15 mark or so, and that some of the top players had injuries.  This is why, for example, Looney, who had been talked about as a late lottery player, fell to 30, and why Hunter, was often mocked to us at 16, was available at 28.  It's why teams just didn't want to trade out of the lottery but for an expensive price, because there really was a drop-off.  It's also why the mocks had no clue after the lottery -- I swear every mock I looked at had one or both of Upshaw and Cliff Alexander going in the first round, and yet both went completely undrafted, and as already noted Looney went all the way down to 30.  No one had the Spurs pick at 26, for instance.

[littleteapot]

The general consensus was that the talent was relatively flat after around the 15 mark or so, and that some of the top players had injuries.  This is why, for example, Looney, who had been talked about as a late lottery player, fell to 30, and why Hunter, was often mocked to us at 16, was available at 28.  It's why teams just didn't want to trade out of the lottery but for an expensive price, because there really was a drop-off.  It's also why the mocks had no clue after the lottery -- I swear every mock I looked at had one or both of Upshaw and Cliff Alexander going in the first round, and yet both went completely undrafted, and as already noted Looney went all the way down to 30.  No one had the Spurs pick at 26, for instance.

Well if all the guys available at 16 were just about equal then we should have taken a guy that was more of a fit.

[Waew]

I dont think people realize there is an element in drafts that are "agent relations". Players will get drafted just to make relations with agents who may return the favor later on.

[Snakehead]

The general consensus was that the talent was relatively flat after around the 15 mark or so, and that some of the top players had injuries.  This is why, for example, Looney, who had been talked about as a late lottery player, fell to 30, and why Hunter, was often mocked to us at 16, was available at 28.  It's why teams just didn't want to trade out of the lottery but for an expensive price, because there really was a drop-off.  It's also why the mocks had no clue after the lottery -- I swear every mock I looked at had one or both of Upshaw and Cliff Alexander going in the first round, and yet both went completely undrafted, and as already noted Looney went all the way down to 30.  No one had the Spurs pick at 26, for instance.

Well if all the guys available at 16 were just about equal then we should have taken a guy that was more of a fit.

Or the one player you think is way underrated.  Rozier.  They think he's a much better prospect than most media people did.

Ainge almost always drafts for best player available.  So that's what he did.

[BudweiserCeltic]

This thread... O.o

[GryphMinuteMan]

I dont think people realize there is an element in drafts that are "agent relations". Players will get drafted just to make relations with agents who may return the favor later on.

Interesting take.

[droopdog7]

Best player available is the ONLY way to go.  This is the nba draft where about half of the players drafted in the first round do nothing in their career. 

You evaluate players regardless of position, and when your turn comes up, you grab the guy that YOU think will actually make it (it's a crap shoot).  Can't be wasting time skipping over better prospects (in your evaluation at least) to grab worse ones.

[D.o.s.]

The last time the Celtics drafted for need we wound up with Fab Melo and JuJuan Johnson.