Boston Celtics Daily Dish: Mock Draft Madness!

Happy Hump Day, Boston Celtics fans!

I have something cool to share with you: last week, I had the idea of getting all the FanSided NBA sites together to whip up our very own Mock Draft.  Dream hasbecome reality, and the first ever FanSided NBA Mock Draft is being shared all around our network!  I will be posting it here at Hardwood Houdini shortly, so be on the lookout for that.

Speaking of mock drafts – they’re everywhere on the web right now!  Chris Ford over at ESPN is already in version 8.0, for goodness sakes!  I don’t want to spoil Ford’s results for you here, but I’ll give you a peek at one of the players he currently sees the Celtics picking:

"[Zach] LaVine is a difficult prospect to project. On raw talent, he’s one of the top 10 players in this draft. But as a basketball player, he still has a long way to go. Celtics boss Danny Ainge hasn’t been afraid to swing for the fences with players like this in the past, and I think at 17, the reward outweighs the risk. The wild card here is Missouri’s Jordan Clarkson, who continues to move up the draft boards with stellar workouts."

That’s right: Ford has Zach LaVine as the 17th pick in the NBA Draft.  Who does he think the Celtics will pick 6th?  Guess you’ll have to head over to ESPN to find out!

But wait!  Chris Ford isn’t the only basketball insider trying to land a few shots in the dark.  Bleacher Report revised its mock draft once the NBA Finals concluded, so who do they have Boston picking first?

"The Boston Celtics recently worked out Aaron Gordon, who offers something at No. 6 you won’t find anywhere else on the board.Outside of Embiid, we could be talking about the draft’s most unique and special defender. At 6’9″, he finished with the fastest shuttle run time at the NBA combine—a drill that measures how fast a player can change direction.He also finished with the most defensive win shares of any player in the country. With his size, foot speed, nearly 7’0″ wingspan and 39″ max vertical, Gordon has secret-weapon potential as a two-way power forward."

You HAVE to head over to BR and read the entire mock draft – there are some real questionable picks on display for you to discuss.

And just to help you cover all of your bases, you should zip on over to Sporting News’ mock draft.  There are no real surprises over there, but I give them this much credit: they’re the only ones who have the Boston Celtics picking T.J. Warren 17th, as far as I have seen.

Okay – enough with the mock drafts!  Let’s end today with a look at the Celtics’ quest to find love – Kevin Love, that is.  Is this Tweet true?

This article over at CBS Sports would seem to back that Tweet up!  Here’s a preview – it’s must read stuff!

"I continue to get strong signals that the Celtics are trying hard to use pick No. 6 and 17 along with future No. 1s and young players such as Jared Sullinger or Kelly Olynyk to persuade the Minnesota Timberwolves to trade them Kevin Love. One source close to the Wolves said that while Flip Saunders does not want to trade Love, he realizes the team likely will lose him this summer and the package the Celtics are offering is probably the best he’s going to get. Given the strength of the draft, picks 6, 13 and 17 could land them three young starters to help them rebuild their roster quickly."

Thanks, everyone!