The Boston Celtics could be looking to make NBL big man Will Magnay their international signing of the 2020 offseason.
While the Boston Celtics may seem to be one veteran piece away from contention, they could well also have their eyes on adding young talent this offseason as well…and the NBA Draft isn’t the only outlet they are reportedly considering.
Free agency has been Danny Ainge’s main way of adding top-line talent the past half-decade (Al Horford, Gordon Hayward, Kemba Walker), but he has also used that as a way to mine for international gold in the form of unsung free agent adds.
Apparently, Ainge is looking to strike again:
I had heard Boston was one of the teams monitoring the availability of 6'10'' Australian big man Will Magnay. Not sure they are the team he's coming over for, but would fit the bill of "off the radar overseas player" from the last few seasons. Theis, Wanamaker, Poirier, etc.
— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) November 13, 2020
Magnay would be another in a line of role players found through the international market. Daniel Theis, Brad Wanamaker, and Vincent Poirier are all players who Ainge was able to scoop up off the overseas scrapheap and (besides Poirier’s case) turn into role players.
Magnay appeared in all 32 games as a freshman in 2016-17 for Tulsa and averaged 3.9 points and 3.0 rebounds per game, shooting 57.8-percent from the floor before going pro in Australia for the NBL, one of the world’s most competitive leagues.
Nothing about his game stands out, making the Houdini question Ainge’s insistence on finding at least one international free agent. While that thinking is smart (finding cost-controllable talent to fill out the roster’s fringes) and has led to finding a legitimate starting center in Daniel Theis, the sting of Vincent Poirier’s inability to make an impact of any sort in his first season lingers.
If Ainge’s pursuit of Magnay escalates, let’s hope he is more Theis than Poirier.
Next. Poirier wants a bigger role or he wants out. dark