Boston Celtics: 5 traditional shooting big men Cs should pursue

Danny Ainge gave a quotable quote that the Houdini…quoted, regarding the Boston Celtics’ search for an upgrade before the first March trade deadline since the lockout-shortened 2012 NBA season (originally via boston.com):

"Ainge was pressed on what he thinks the Celtics’ top need is currently. “I would say maybe shooting with size,” he replied. “There are a lot of different ways that you can win in this league,” said Ainge when asked specifically why he felt that way, “but I would say that shooting, we could use shooting, we could use passing, but you always need defense."

That got me thinking what exactly that meant:

"To recap, Ainge wants a big man that can also shoot. Whether that means a tweener forward, or a more traditional big man is unclear."

And it got me thinking about what traditional big men (floor-spacing)  the Cs could add in the frontcourt to space the floor:

Boston Celtics traditional shooting big man #1: Ersan Ilyasova

Ersan Ilyasova would serve as the last wave-producing of any splash Danny Ainge can make of the players on this list, but he is still a possible addition that could bring balance to the lineup–at least in spurts.

While Ilyasova’s rebounding numbers wowed on the surface, he actually averaged a tick under nine boards per game per-36 minutes. His career 36.5% conversion rate from beyond the arc makes him a multi-use veteran that could bring postseason experience to a Celtics roster that always seems to get younger.

As a short-term addition in a pandemic season that may lead to expanded rosters, he could bring value to the Boston Celtics second-unit and provide spot starts when called upon.