It said he and Fultz could co excist

[KG Living Legend]

 Mass live.

 Washington guard Markelle Fultz, who is out with a sore knee, has the ball passed to him before an NCAA college basketball game against Washington State in Pullman, Wash., Sunday, Feb. 26, 2017. (AP Photo/Young Kwak)
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BY JAY KING
LOS ANGELES -- Boston Celtics star Isaiah Thomas realized very quickly the difference between Markelle Fultz and most other teenage basketball players. During a pickup game at the University of Washington last summer, Thomas saw Fultz, now a Washington freshman, operate with a different feel than most point guards his age.

"When we first played together," Thomas said Friday morning in Los Angeles, "when he first got on campus, you knew that day: he's special."

After playing with each other a few times over the summer, Thomas and Fultz built a relationship. They stay in contact by text messages every once in a while. So Thomas might be a little biased when he says Fultz "will be the No. 1 pick, for sure."

"He has all the tools," Thomas said. "He can shoot, pass, he's athletic. He's got nice size. He plays at his own pace. That's something you can't teach. Like, he's so poised in any type of situation."


At this stage of the evaluation process, most NBA scouts seem to agree with Thomas' assertion Fultz will go No. 1. But UCLA's Lonzo Ball has at least created debate about who the top overall pick should be. Most NBA front-office types who have talked to MassLive still favor Fultz, but two late last month said they would lean toward Ball if they needed to choose right now.

Whoever goes first overall, the point guards will likely go 1-2. It might not be ideal for the Celtics that the top prospects in this draft both play Thomas' position, but the two-time All-Star is convinced he can thrive with any type of backcourt mate, including Fultz and Ball.

"I can play with anybody," Thomas said. "I can play off the ball, I can come off screens, I can catch and shoot. So I think that's, even going back to college, my first couple of years I was off the ball. And then I can play on the ball as well. So a lot of guys can't do both, but I'm fine with doing both."


Boston will almost certainly enter lottery night with a 46.5-percent chance of landing a top-two pick. If keep it and their choice is Fultz, Thomas believes the 18-year-old could succeed off the ball, too.

"He's that good to where I think if he's put in that situation he can," Thomas said. "He's special, man."

Plus, Thomas added with a smile, "Anybody that (the Celtics) pick or is going to be on this team, they're going to have to play with me. So that's just what it is."

[saltlover]

You should put the link in your articles.  Jay King is a good reporter who works hard -- give him his page clicks at least.  Even better, only put a paragraph or two, and let people click for the rest of the story.

http://www.masslive.com/celtics/index.ssf/2017/03/2017_nba_draft_news_boston_cel.html

[droopdog7]

In my mind Fultz is a notch ahead of all other prospects.  He checks virtually all the boxes, whereas as guys like Jackson, Ball, and others have at least one serious question to answer.

The problem is we'll have only a 25% chance of picking him.  I ran the lottery simulator 18 times the other day before we ended up at #1.  So not even worth fantasizing about IMO.

[BringToughnessBack]

TP....That sounds great to me as well and I love IT's attitude. He truly enjoys being a Celtics player. I could live with any of the top 3 prospects as of now but most do believe Fultz is the one with the magic qualities one looks for in a superstar.

I am trying to stay grounded knowing that we only have a 46.5% chance of top 2 barring the Nets dont go on a tear and the Lakers dont win another game the rest of the year 

[The One]

You should put the link in your articles.  Jay King is a good reporter who works hard -- give him his page clicks at least.  Even better, only put a paragraph or two, and let people click for the rest of the story.

http://www.masslive.com/celtics/index.ssf/2017/03/2017_nba_draft_news_boston_cel.html

Thank you...very much appreciated.

(I'm not Mr. King.)

[Denis998]

You should put the link in your articles.  Jay King is a good reporter who works hard -- give him his page clicks at least.  Even better, only put a paragraph or two, and let people click for the rest of the story.

http://www.masslive.com/celtics/index.ssf/2017/03/2017_nba_draft_news_boston_cel.html

His daily podcasts are great too

[PhoSita]

That's the right attitude.

Whoever is drafted will have to figure out how to play with IT, not the other way around.

Honestly, what I've seen of Fultz makes me feel he's

(a) Going to be a work-in-progress defensively and as a passer

and

(b) He's probably going to be more of a combo guard than a point guard, though that distinction means less and less these days.


Overall, I wouldn't be worried at all about playing IT and Fultz together.


As for Ball, he seems like a bit more of a ball-dominant creator type, but his outside stroke and size would make him an interesting pairing with IT. 


Either way, if the Celts draft a guard they're going to get a guy with size to play both backcourt spots, and that guy will probably be best-suited to play a bench role for his first couple years in the league, anyway.

[Chris22]

Any pick in the top four is going to be great. Jackson would be fun.
IT, Brown, Jackson, Crowder, and Horford for a small unit.

[Dannys Chipotle Guy]

Fultz can shoot, he has a good bball IQ(I think?) and he can defend 2s and 1s.

Isaiah is really good off-ball offensively.

They can absolutely coexist.

[footey]

Let's see where we come out in Lotto. Still think Jackson makes the most sense for us.