NBA Draft: 2 players the Boston Celtics could — and should — have drafted in 2016

The Boston Celtics have managed to strike gold through the NBA Draft in recent years. However, this does not mean they haven’t missed out on some quality talent as well. Here are 2 specific players they passed on in 2016.

Over the past decade the Boston Celtics have found themselves with an outrageous amount of draft capital thanks in large to the now famous — or infamous, depending on where your allegiance lies — 2013 trade that sent Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett to Brooklyn.

In exchange, the C’s received irrelevant salary matching contracts (Kris Humphries, Gerald Wallace, etc.) and future first round draft picks in 2014, 2016 and 2018. While the players received didn’t ever wind up making any long-lasting impacts for the franchise (none but Wallace stayed past that season) the draft assets acquired have managed to blossom into part of the main foundation for this current iteration of the team, namely Jaylen Brown (2016) and Jayson Tatum (2018).

Since this deal, Danny Ainge managed to work his way into acquiring 10 — including Brooklyn’s — additional first round draft picks that spans into this upcoming draft (own the rights to the Memphis Grizzlies and Milwaukee Bucks picks).

Barring any unforeseen trades, the Boston Celtics will be on the clock three times in the first round for this year’s NBA Draft. The last time they held this much draft picks was during the 2016 draft.

This was the night that the team nabbed Brown third overall, which would make one believe the night was a complete success for the franchise — after all, the wing was arguably an All-Star snub this season and is boasting averages of 20.4 points and 6.4 rebounds on 49 percent shooting from the field and 38 percent shooting from deep.

However, when examining the decisions they made with their two proceeding picks, one could certainly say they whiffed on making the team even better than they currently are.

Aside from the third overall selection the C’s held the rights to the 16th and 23rd overall picks. You may know who they chose with said selections, but perhaps you’re unaware of whom they could and, frankly, should have chosen.

With this in mind, the Houdini will bring you on a trip down memory lane and show you the two players the Celtics selected, and the players they could have drafted instead.