The Celtics Need to Go All-In on a Big Man
By Eric Cross
The number one pick is gone, so now what? Boston needs to use some of their almost unlimited assets and trade for a star big man.
Well that was a fun weekend, wasn’t it? I guess it all matters what your definition of fun is. I know, a lot of you are fuming at Danny Ainge right now. We hadn’t had a #1 overall pick in almost 40 years and he just trades it away. I’ll admit, even I was mad when this deal was reported. If you’ve read some of my previous articles, you’ll know I’m very high on the superstar potential of Markelle Fultz. Apparently, Ainge and company weren’t, and they’re the ones getting paid the big bucks to evaluate talent and make the necessary roster moves.
Reports have said that Boston wasn’t overly impressed by Fultz’s workouts. If that was indeed the case, then this makes sense. However, it still leaves Celtics fans around the globe are left wondering, now what?
While we don’t know the answer to that question, we do know that the Celtics have acquired a plethora of first round picks over the next three drafts.
2017
#3 Overall Pick (Via Philadelphia)
2018
1st Round Pick (Via Brooklyn)
1st Round Pick (Own)
Protected 1st Round Pick (Via Philadelphia and Los Angeles. Only receive pick if its #2-5, otherwise Boston would receive Sacramento’s 1st in 2019, unprotected.)
2019
1st Round Pick (Own)
1st Round Pick (via Los Angeles Clippers & Memphis. Protected is pick is #1-14 in 2019 & 2020, then becomes 2022 2nd round pick)
1st Round Pick (via Memphis. Protected if the pick is #1-8 in 2019 and 1-6 in 2020. Unprotected in 2021)
It took a second to read all those picks, didn’t it? That’s potentially seven first-round picks in the next three drafts. Could the Celtics just sit back and use all those draft picks? Sure they could. However, the more probable path is trading a few of those picks for a star player.
There have been several names popping up in trade rumors for the Celtics. Many expect Ainge to take another run at Jimmy Butler, or try and acquire Paul George on the cheap after he recently told Indiana he’s leaving town for free agency after next season.
Both of them are incredible players, but are they really good fits in Boston? George has stated multiple times that he wants to play in Los Angeles once his contract with is up. So in all likelihood, you’d only have him on your roster for one season. That’s not really worth it in my book. Yeah, you wouldn’t have to give up as much to get him, but is acquiring George for one season going to put you over the top in the East? Probably not.
On the other hand, there are two years left on Butler’s contract. He would certainly fill the scoring need that Boston has, but he had issues of his own in Chicago with a lack of leadership and not getting along with his teammates. Do you really want Boston to sell the farm for a player like that?
In the end, there’s one player that might be available that would fit all of Boston’s needs. That man is Anthony Davis. Davis is undoubtedly one of the top five talents in the NBA. He’s a seven-footer, tremendously athletic, and is one of the best scorers and rebounders in the league. He fills all the check boxes of the type of superstar that Boston needs.
Obviously, it would take a king’s ransom to pry “The Brow” away from the Pelicans, but Boston has more than enough assets to pull a deal off. New Orleans has some solid pieces already in place, but a deal with Boston could help them turn into an upper-echelon team in the West in the next few years. The below offer from Boston might get it done.
Let’s start with the players. Marcus Smart is a free agent after this season, but if New Orleans can sign him to a long-term contract, he could be their starting point guard for the next several seasons. Smart is extremely inconsistent offensively, but if you surround him with some good offensive players, this could be a great fit. Plus, he’s a great defender, which would be a huge asset with the likes of James Harden, Steph Curry, Russell Westbrook, etc., wreaking havoc on the Western Conference.
Every great team needs a glue guy. The type of behind the scenes player that does a lot of good things. Both of the finals teams had at least one of those type of guys. Cleveland has rebounding machine Tristan Thompson, while Golden State has Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala. Jae Crowder could be that guy for New Orleans.
Crowder will never wow you with any one aspect of his game, but he sure does a lot of things well. He’s a competent scorer that can shoot from outside and drive the lane, a decent rebounder, and a very good defender. Plus, he’s under contract for three more seasons.
New Orleans might be more inclined to demand Jaylen Brown in this deal as opposed to Smart and Crowder, and I wouldn’t blame them. Brown flashed star potential during his rookie season and a gifted athlete. Hopefully, Boston can address their needs without giving him up.
The two picks New Orleans would be getting are extremely valuable picks with next year’s draft class shaping up to be very strong overall. Early indicators are that there will be a few star-caliber big men available next June. Having two probably high lottery picks would give the Pelicans a chance to draft two young star prospects to add to their solid core, including a big man to pair with DeMarcus Cousins.
From Boston’s side, this type of trade would put them right up with Cleveland. It would also give them the option of either slotting Jaylen Brown into the starting small forward spot vacated by Crowder, or sign a big name free agent. So overall, it seems like a win-win.
Another name of late that has popped up is Andre Drummond. There have been rumors that he might be made available by the Pistons and he would fill one of the voids Boston has. Drummond is arguably the best rebounder in the entire league. He’s averaged a stunning 12.8 rebounds per game over his five-year career and hasn’t been under 13.2 per game since his rookie season. Drummond is limited offensively, and a downright pathetic free throw shooter, but he would fix the Celtics rebounding issue easily.
The price for Drummond would surely be lower than it would be for Davis. Something along the lines of one of the 2018 picks plus Smart might be enough to get it done.
Next: How Other Teams have Fared that Traded the first Overall Pick
Those are just two names the Celtics could go after. They might even stick with fixing their depleted front court via the draft or free agency. Regardless of how it gets done, the Celtics need some beef up front. I’m sure Celtics Nation is getting tired of getting out rebounded basically every night. The Celtics have the assets to fix this issue right away.