Celtics Come Up Big in Second Round

The Boston Celtics saved their draft with an excellent second round

After a very uneventful, and somewhat disappointing, first round, the Boston Celtics were able to come up big with some of their picks in the second round. It was expected to be a busy night for the Celtics, since they owned eight draft picks going into Thursday night, however, their lone trade took place at the start of the second round.

Boston traded the rights to Deyonta Davis (31st pick) and Rade Zagorac (35th pick) to the Memphis Grizzlies for the Los Angeles Clippers 2019 1st round pick.

Deyonta Davis was seen as a possible top-10 pick going into the night, and most likely a lottery selection, but he slipped all the way to the second round and became one of the biggest steals of the night. The Celtics could have used the raw big man, but instead they were able to package him and another early second round pick for a possible future first round selection.

Boston couldn’t keep all eight picks, even if they continued to draft international players. It was unlikely Boston would be able to package any other second round picks for the return they received, justifying their move to give up Davis.

It does come with risk though as the Clippers first round selection is lottery protected in 2019 and 2020, and will become a second round pick in 2022 if the Clippers miss the playoffs both years. That’s certainly a possibility as Chris Paul and Blake Griffin are set to hit the free agent market next off-season, meaning the Clippers could go on a downward spiral very quickly.

But leave it to Danny Ainge to take a risk on draft night, hoping the Clippers can barely squeak into the playoffs one of those years. Only time will tell whether passing on Davis for a chance at another first round pick was worth it, but it seems like a reasonable move for a team who owned too many picks.

Once the Celtics were on the clock picking for themselves, they hit really big with their next two picks. Boston was able to land point guard Demetrius Jackson out of Notre Dame with the 45th pick and power forward Ben Bentil with the 51st selection. Both were seen as likely first round selections, but the international talent forced them to fall farther than anyone could have expected.

Yes, another point guard isn’t ideal, although, Jackson was seen as a borderline lottery pick heading into the night. No one knows why he fell so far, but he should challenge Terry Rozier and Marcus Smart for minutes right away as he’s an explosive offensive guard. Adding another offensive-minded guard is what Boston needed, and getting one at that point in the draft was impressive.

As impressive of a find as it was, it was a questionable choice to say the least. Obviously adding another scoring option next to Isaiah Thomas is a hole the Celtics needed to fill, however, they also needed to add to their front court and had yet to do so at this point of the draft. They drafted two international prospects in the first round but neither will likely be on the NBA roster next season.

Ben Bentil seemed like the obvious choice with the 45th pick, but just like most of the night, the Celtics were unconventional and added another guard. Luckily, Bentil was still available with the 51st pick in the draft.

Bentil was seen as a late first round pick by many, however, now seems like a gift for the Celtics near the end of the draft. He’s raw but still has a chance to play as a rookie. Bentil was one of the most improved players as a sophomore last season as he and Kris Dunn led Providence to another successful season.

Bentil finished the year averaging 21.1 points (led the Big East), 7.7 rebounds, and one block per game on 46.2 percent shooting from the field. He does most of his work on offense using his mid-range game, and he owns a developing three-point shot – 32.9 percent last season. Bentil does need to develop a better post game, and he’s not the best defender. He’ll likely guard other stretch-fours in the NBA.

He did average around nine rebounds per 40 minutes during both seasons at Providence, however, he’s far from a finished product in that category. When it comes down to it, Bentil has the tools to be a very good NBA player, but he has to put in the effort to improve.

The Celtics ended the night by drafting Abdel Nader with the 58th pick. The Iowa State product started his career at Northern Illinois, and after some questionable character, was able to save his career in Ames, Iowa. Nader has said he’s fine being stashed in the D-League as a rookie.

The first round of the draft didn’t go as expected for the Celtics, but I doubt it did for any team not named the Philadelphia 76ers or Los Angeles Lakers. It was one of the craziest drafts in a long time as many international players were taken, players fell, and teams reached for a lot of players.

Next: Celtics Draft Deyonta Davis, Trade Him

Still, the Celtics left the draft with one of the biggest steals of the night in Ben Bentil and a very good value pick in Demetrius Jackson. Their early second round trade might seem questionable at the time, since Deyonta Davis fell to the second round, but it’s no surprise that Danny Ainge took a chance at another first round selection in a couple of seasons.