Boston Celtics: Pass or pursue on 3 prospects linked to Cs
Boston Celtics draft target #2: Kai Jones, PF/C, Texas
Out of the Big 12, Texas’ Kai Jones is one of the bounciest options in the NBA Draft. In many ways, he is the antithesis of the C’s current starting center situation, with youth and way-above-the-rim chops compared to Daniel Theis and Tristan Thompson.
His game is not too dissimilar to Robert Williams’, but the Longhorns sophomore is far more versatile offensively. While his lob-finishing ability is comparable–with Jones owning a two-inch height advantage on the Time Lord–Jones is a much superior floor-spacer.
In 2020-21, Jones shot a 39% clip from the 3-point line. That was a ten percentage point jump from his freshman year, showing that even during a global pandemic, there was a desire to improve his game.
Just imagine what an athlete of that caliber could do in a Cs training staff that has made Daniel Theis an NBA starter for an Eastern Conference finals team.
After winning a Big 12 title with Texas this past Saturday, Jones now has the NCAA tournament to improve his draft stock, but Boston Celtics fans shouldn’t hope it skyrockets too much, because acquiring him in the late first round would be an ideal way to find the perfect lineup fit for a team that faces a big decision on Daniel Theis this offseason.