My #3 pick

[playdream]

After we actually got #3 i finally watch into those guys scouting videios and here is my conclusion

Brown:elite athelet, but not a good basketball players, lacks defense/offense skills/instincts and those things(because too many) are hard to learn

Murray: talented scorer, but will always be bad on defense due to average athleticism, and even his offense isn't likely to translate in the NBA since he already struggled against better colleage defenders, he stopped at 25/27 shooting and didn't try to make all of them also showed lack of competition

Hield:elite shooter, but all other skill is below NBA leve(physical profile is average)  , he knows how to improve and may improve sooner than others, but it will be a long long way for him to be more than a one trick catch and shoot pony

Bender:he can pass/shoot/rebound/run/defend/dribble but none of them(including athleticism) are close to elite, but this plus his age/experience/work ethic and most importantly his length makes him full of hope

So in purpose of drafting a long term keeper=a star i will gamble on Benderr

[Ogaju]

I agree that Bender is the guy at #3. If you don't want Bender at 3, you trade down.

[mr. dee]

Draft guys with great work ethic and motor. Yep, its either Bender or Hield.

[PaulP34]

Drafting Bender will be the biggest mistake in Danny's career. Bender is not worth a #3 pick. I pick Buddy Held at #3 with all the confidence in the world that he's a top 10 player in two years flat. Sorry but anyone who drafts Bender in the top 6 are making a mistake unless they wanna sit the kid for three years and hope he develops. I don't think Ainge should take that chance and I don't think he does. Bender is not getting picked by the Celtics.

[dreamgreen]

Brown shouldn't be on the list he is one of the worse shooters in the draft which is a critical part of the current NBA. He should not be a lottery pick IMO, I read and hear nothing good about him and his ability to translate to the NBA.

[DarkAzcura]

You are using Murray's 25/27 shooting in two minutes during the star drill as a negative? Is that a joke? Haha

There was an article written explaining how he did the drill three times, and he mainly did he third to one up someone who hit 24. Plenty competitive.

[CoachBo]

Drafting Bender will be the biggest mistake in Danny's career. Bender is not worth a #3 pick. I pick Buddy Held at #3 with all the confidence in the world that he's a top 10 player in two years flat. Sorry but anyone who drafts Bender in the top 6 are making a mistake unless they wanna sit the kid for three years and hope he develops. I don't think Ainge should take that chance and I don't think he does. Bender is not getting picked by the Celtics.

TP. Completely agree.

We are trying to win now, and burning the best draft pick the franchise has had on 20 years on a wild gamble like Bender is absolute madness.

I have to keep reminding myself, though, that a substantial minority of Celtics fans would rather be in perpetual rebuilding mode than actually win. It's disappointing.

I like Hield's shooting - I am an OU grad - but I have some concerns about the remainder of his game. I'd prefer to trade the pick and leave the Great Bender Mistake to someone else.

[hwangjini_1]

Don't we already have 2,364,812 threads on this topic? 

[Androslav]

Drafting Bender will be the biggest mistake in Danny's career. Bender is not worth a #3 pick. I pick Buddy Held at #3 with all the confidence in the world that he's a top 10 player in two years flat. Sorry but anyone who drafts Bender in the top 6 are making a mistake unless they wanna sit the kid for three years and hope he develops. I don't think Ainge should take that chance and I don't think he does. Bender is not getting picked by the Celtics.

TP. Completely agree.

We are trying to win now, and burning the best draft pick the franchise has had on 20 years on a wild gamble like Bender is absolute madness.

I like Hield's shooting - I am an OU grad - but I have some concerns about the remainder of his game. I'd prefer to trade the pick and leave the Great Bender Mistake to someone else.

I don't think we are in a full win-now mode.
We don't have a star yet, and none are on the horizon at the moment.
Cleveland has at least 2 strong years in them. We need to continue the gradual team building.
I would go for Bender and develop him for 2 years. He has the most upside and is playing our weak big positions. I wouldn't draft on a "who will be better next year" assumption.
Hields shots looks great, he is 4 years older. Kind of a made player. Rich-mans prime Jodie Meeks. I'm not disrespecting, I mean it in a good way. I don't think he will be breaking down defenses off the dribble or finishing above the defense. He looks like a great specialist. With a skill that's high on demand. He is easy to like in that sense.

[loco_91]

After we actually got #3 i finally watch into those guys scouting videios and here is my conclusion

Brown:elite athelet, but not a good basketball players, lacks defense/offense skills/instincts and those things(because too many) are hard to learn

Murray: talented scorer, but will always be bad on defense due to average athleticism, and even his offense isn't likely to translate in the NBA since he already struggled against better colleage defenders, he stopped at 25/27 shooting and didn't try to make all of them also showed lack of competition

Hield:elite shooter, but all other skill is below NBA leve(physical profile is average)  , he knows how to improve and may improve sooner than others, but it will be a long long way for him to be more than a one trick catch and shoot pony

Bender:he can pass/shoot/rebound/run/defend/dribble but none of them(including athleticism) are close to elite, but this plus his age/experience/work ethic and most importantly his length makes him full of hope

So in purpose of drafting a long term keeper=a star i will gamble on Benderr

Mostly agree with this. This year's 3-7 range is quite weak, although I do think Poeltl is an excellent prospect, and Bender might be an average #3 pick based on limited information.
-Murray's scoring I think will translate; he got most of his offense off contested jump shots on the move, and those types of shots are usually still there at the NBA level, especially in a system like ours. I more worry about guys without great tools who got lots of their offense in the paint + in transition at the NCAA level.
-I think Bender's passing might be elite; it's hard to tell, but that's what some smart people say, and his outlet passing is definitely awesome. And if he tops out at 7'2 with a 7'3 wingspan and a 9'4 reach, then he'll have elite length for a PF.

[Ilikesports17]

After we actually got #3 i finally watch into those guys scouting videios and here is my conclusion

Brown:elite athelet, but not a good basketball players, lacks defense/offense skills/instincts and those things(because too many) are hard to learn

Murray: talented scorer, but will always be bad on defense due to average athleticism, and even his offense isn't likely to translate in the NBA since he already struggled against better colleage defenders, he stopped at 25/27 shooting and didn't try to make all of them also showed lack of competition

Hield:elite shooter, but all other skill is below NBA leve(physical profile is average)  , he knows how to improve and may improve sooner than others, but it will be a long long way for him to be more than a one trick catch and shoot pony

Bender:he can pass/shoot/rebound/run/defend/dribble but none of them(including athleticism) are close to elite, but this plus his age/experience/work ethic and most importantly his length makes him full of hope

So in purpose of drafting a long term keeper=a star i will gamble on Benderr

I read Murray retook the shooting drill 3x. First he fell oone short of the record, so he demanded to do it again, broke the record than watched his workout partner beat him, so he argued his way into doing the drill again and hit 25 to set a new record.

The drill is exhausting. He showed more than enough competitiveness if that story is true.

[elcotte]

Drafting Bender will be the biggest mistake in Danny's career. Bender is not worth a #3 pick. I pick Buddy Held at #3 with all the confidence in the world that he's a top 10 player in two years flat. Sorry but anyone who drafts Bender in the top 6 are making a mistake unless they wanna sit the kid for three years and hope he develops. I don't think Ainge should take that chance and I don't think he does. Bender is not getting picked by the Celtics.

TP. Completely agree.

We are trying to win now, and burning the best draft pick the franchise has had on 20 years on a wild gamble like Bender is absolute madness.

I have to keep reminding myself, though, that a substantial minority of Celtics fans would rather be in perpetual rebuilding mode than actually win. It's disappointing.

I like Hield's shooting - I am an OU grad - but I have some concerns about the remainder of his game. I'd prefer to trade the pick and leave the Great Bender Mistake to someone else.

So, you're going to trade the pick to get someone who is going to help us win now....who, exactly is that?

[Celtics4ever]

Bender:he can pass/shoot/rebound/run/defend/dribble but none of them(including athleticism) are close to elite, but this plus his age/experience/work ethic and most importantly his length makes him full of hope

Stats do not bear this out.   

http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Dragan-Bender-62877/

[tarheelsxxiii]

Drafting Bender will be the biggest mistake in Danny's career. Bender is not worth a #3 pick. I pick Buddy Held at #3 with all the confidence in the world that he's a top 10 player in two years flat. Sorry but anyone who drafts Bender in the top 6 are making a mistake unless they wanna sit the kid for three years and hope he develops. I don't think Ainge should take that chance and I don't think he does. Bender is not getting picked by the Celtics.

TP. Completely agree.

We are trying to win now, and burning the best draft pick the franchise has had on 20 years on a wild gamble like Bender is absolute madness.

I have to keep reminding myself, though, that a substantial minority of Celtics fans would rather be in perpetual rebuilding mode than actually win. It's disappointing.

I like Hield's shooting - I am an OU grad - but I have some concerns about the remainder of his game. I'd prefer to trade the pick and leave the Great Bender Mistake to someone else.

You want to trade the pick? Super. There also has to be a willing trade partner -- I'm not seeing the equivalent of an old friend like McHale out there to change our franchise. Therefore, if we can't trade, we should swing for the fences on Bender.

Also take into account how far away we actually are from contending. You want to win now? So do I. But in reality, unless stars align in the way I stated above, that is not happening in the near future. We are still a middle of the pack team. Assets? Sure, like any other team. Yet we fleece our roster in any trade (see: what CHI wanted for Butler), and there's no reason to believe a FA is walking through the door.

Lastly, it's a very bad year to be drafting at #3 and striving for FAs. Weak draft and lack of FA (Durant is reupping for a year, the rest suck). Collectively, barring a highly unlikely major trade (that could fleece the roster), swing for the fences with Bender at #3.

[Mattybriand]

You are using Murray's 25/27 shooting in two minutes during the star drill as a negative? Is that a joke? Haha

There was an article written explaining how he did the drill three times, and he mainly did he third to one up someone who hit 24. Plenty competitive.

TP