Boston Celtics Daily Dish: The Draft Is Coming!

Morning, Boston Celtics fans, and welcome to NBA Draft week!

If you’re not excited about the 2014 NBA Draft, you’re either

A. Dead, 0r

B. A Miami Heat fan.

Because we all know they don’t have real basketball fans down there in South Beach.

Either way, you probably wouldn’t be here if you were either A or B, so I’m assuming you are as excited as I am, which means I need to stop wasting your time and get to work!

Three days to go?  Why, here are the guys picked third in the past nine drafts!

As many of you are aware, Joel Embiid’s foot injury has made this year’s draft very exciting.  Embiid was a guaranteed top-three pick before his injury; now, mock draft have him going anywhere from 1st (most of these drafts were completed before the injury) to 6th – yep, a good number of drafts now have the Celtics landing the Cameroonian center.  For a compilation of the “best” mock drafts around the web – how is our NBA editors mock draft here at FanSided not considered one of the best? – head over to NBA.com’s Consensus Mock Draft page.

There’s some sad news to report, as a player who was projected as a potential second-round pick now has to quit the game he loves:

"Seven-foot-1 Baylor center Isaiah Austin was on the cusp of an NBA career and becoming an inspiration to millions of people as the first to play in the league while partially blind. Now Austin could potentially be battling for his life. Genetic testing as part of the 2014 NBA Draft revealed that Austin suffers from a career-ending condition called Marfan syndrome, Baylor announced Sunday morning. Marfan syndrome is caused by a genetic mutation that leads to problems in connective tissues throughout the body. According to The Marfan Foundation, about one in 5,000 people have Marfan syndrome. It can cause aortic enlargement, which can be life-threatening."

So sad – best of luck to you, Isaiah; stay healthy, bro!

Now this is the kind of draft coverage I love to see: a detalied list of every NBA team’s needs, no matter how many picks they have in the upcoming draft!

"The middle class is dead in the 2014 NBA draft, where everyone is either a have or a have-not.Nine of the league’s 30 teams do not have a single first-round pick in Thursday’s draft. Seven have two picks and the Suns, those glorious asset-accumulating Suns, are sitting pretty with three. With a number of superstars facing uncertain futures and so many teams sitting on extra picks, it seems reasonable to expect some action on draft night.Here’s a rundown of needs for all 30 NBA teams — even those who aren’t currently holding picks – in advance of the draft."

This story has been developing for a few weeks now, but it’s finally official: Boston Celtics assistant coach Ron Adams is headed to Golden State.

Drat.

Finally, I know Kevin Love has attracted the interest of the Boston Celtics, and the fans . . . but now that Carmelo Anthony has decided to opt out of his contract, should the Celtics turn their eyes toward him?  Rajon Rondo certainly seems to believe ‘Melo would be a worthy addition:

"“You never know what Danny [Ainge] is capable of doing,” Rondo said. “I can’t tell you too much. We want to be contenders as well next year. We don’t plan on being down for too long. I think Danny has a lot of wiggle room with what he’s done the last couple years with the draft so I’m looking forward to what’s going to happen so hopefully [Carmelo] doesn’t go to Chicago.”Rondo continued: “After we try to get Melo, or that additional piece, then who knows? The sky’s the limit. I play to try to win a championship every year. And with Melo I think it’s very possible.”"

Chew on that one for a bit!