Boston Celtics Draft Profile: Isaiah Whitehead

Isaiah Whitehead gave up a chance at stardom for the draft

Isaiah Whitehead would have been a pre-season All-American next season if he stayed for his junior season. After having an injury-riddled freshman season, Whitehead played in all 34 games for Seton Hall last year and led them to the NCAA Tournament.

On the way he was named to the First Team All-Big East and the Big East Tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. He finally started to have the success that many projected he would have when ESPN ranked him as the 14th best high school prospect in the class of 2014.

No one knew whether Whitehead would stay in the draft or go back to school until he made his final announcement. He’s seen as a late first round pick or early second rounder this year but could have leaped into the lottery with another good season at Seton Hall. He decided to stay in the draft and enters with a lot of potential but also some question marks.

Whitehead showed a lot of improvement from his freshman to sophomore season and enters the draft with the potential to be a very good NBA player. He averaged 18.2 points, 5.1 assists, 1.4 blocks and 1.2 steals per game as he showcased his all-around game as a sophomore.

Adding another guard might not be on the top of the Boston Celtics‘ list this off-season but if they’re able to snag him in the second round then he could end up being a steal. He impacted the game on both ends of the floor for Seton Hall and has the potential to develop into a starting caliber point guard.

A lot of people think of Isaiah Whitehead as a scorer and not much else on offense, however, he’s a very underrated passer. In fact, he recorded at least eight assists eight times this past season and ranked third in the Big East in assists per games. He’s not going to average a double-double but he makes the smart play and is an above-average passer. Whitehead averaged at least five assists per 40 minutes during both seasons at Seton Hall.

Even though he is an underrated passer, Whitehead’s main focus is scoring. He finished second in the Big East in points per game last season as his outside shot improved. Whitehead shot 36.5 percent from behind the arc as a sophomore. Usually when a player is able to shoot that consistently from three it means they’re able to score from anywhere on the court.

That doesn’t apply to Whitehead though as he struggles from mid-range. His mid-range game is a work in progress, to say the least. He only shot 39 percent from inside the arc as a sophomore and finished the season shooting 37.9 percent from the field on 15.1 shots per game. While he is able to get to the rim, not having a mid-range game is what’s hurting his stock the most.

His field-goal percentage went up by less than two percent between his two seasons and some teams worry a mid-range game will never develop. Whitehead isn’t a good enough three-point shooter, yet, to rely on that part of his game. He mostly makes a living off getting to the basket but that’s not always going to work in the NBA.

He’ll need to pull-up and take an 18-foot jumper or run off screens and hit a shot from 15-feet out. Right now Whitehead won’t be that guy as his poor shooting led to some inconsistency in his game.

Whitehead was saved by his 5.8 free-throw attempts per game and 76 percent shooting from the free-throw line, however, he only shot 50 percent or above from the field seven times as a sophomore. His best game came in a 33 point outburst against DePaul when he shot 10-of-15 from the field and 6-of-10 from three.

Even with all the highlights Isaiah Whitehead made, his bad games are glaring signs of why he’s not ready to play at the NBA-level yet. In the NCAA Tournament against Gonzaga, Whitehead shot a dreadful 4-of-24 from the field and 0-of-10 from behind the arc as he posted 10 points and eight assists. It shows he was still making an impact by getting his teammates involved but that’s not the type of game he or scouts wanted to see.

Offensively Whitehead has the potential to be a very good player. He can already get to the free-throw line and has a developing three-point shot, but the key will be his mid-range game. If he’s never able to develop a pull-up shot or an 18-foot jumper then he’ll struggle on a lot of nights.

On defense, there was only five games where he failed to record a steal and block in the same game. He has great size for a guard at 6’4″ so it allows him to block a lot more shots than most guards. In fact, he was sixth in blocks per game in the Big East and was the only guard in the top-ten.

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When it comes down to it there are few guards who can block shots as effectively and efficiently as Whitehead. Also, he is very quick on his feet and averaged 1.4 steals per game as a freshman. His big build helps him play inside and it’s hard to get by him as he’s also very quick on the perimeter. He has the makings of being a very good defensive guard in the NBA.

Isaiah Whitehead needs playing time as a rookie to get better. He has a lot of potential but there’s also glaring holes that need to be worked on if he wants to be successful in the NBA. If the Boston Celtics took a chance on Whitehead in the second round and gave him a lot of minutes in the D-League then he could contribute to the NBA roster in a couple of seasons.

His size is something that’s missing from the Celtics back court and he could give them a solid ball-handler in a couple of seasons when his shot develops.

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There aren’t many, if any, sure things in the second round so drafting a combo guard with a lot of potential on both ends is always a good pick. Right now he’s not ready to play on a competitor but I think he has as good of a chance as Terry Rozier to make a mark on the Celtics if given the time to develop.