Boston Celtics: Key takeaways from the C’s draft moves

Let’s begin with what happened on draft night. The 2021 NBA draft featured many surprises as it saw multiple top prospects fall and teams come away with numerous lottery-level talents despite only having one lottery pick. The draft wasn’t as eventful for the Boston Celtics, but it did point to some signs regardless, and some news surfaced which greatly benefited the Cs.

The Boston Celtics had one pick in the 2021 NBA Draft at 45th overall and, with it, they selected a young Frenchman by the name of Juhann Begarin.

The 18-year-old guard just led his team to a promotion in the French league and projects to be a draft and stash candidate as he looks to polish his game before entering the best league in basketball.

The Boston Celtics were fools to pass up on BJ Boston and Sharife Cooper, but seeing as Begarin does not add any additional salary to their books and keeps an extra roster space open to bring in another free agent or trade target, it makes sense why they passed up on two first-round caliber talents.

After the draft, the Boston Celtics signed Sam Hauser to a two-way contract after he went unselected.

The senior out of Virginia was projected to go in the second-round, as he was a top-three shooter in the draft class but fell off due to his age.

Hauser was an excellent pickup and could find a way into Ime Udoka’s rotation if he proves himself in Summer League and during preseason.

If his shooting translates, his age won’t be a problem, and his 6-8 frame gives him more of a chance of playing actual minutes since he won’t bleed too much value on the defensive end.

The NBA draft did not point to anything that we didn’t already know about the Boston Celtics.

Brad Stevens is continuing to keep the books clean, and he’s not looking to add inexperienced depth to his roster. On top of that, Stevens saw no reason to give up too many assets to trade up in the draft even though multiple first-round prospects were well within his grasp.

As hard as that may be to stomach if you follow the draft, Boston is no longer in a position to invest in young talent and hope they pan out and Stevens knows it.

The news which surfaced on draft night was actually a lack of news.

The Washington Wizards gave Bradley Beal until the end of the NBA draft to put in his trade request, and nothing has been heard a few days later. Even after the Wizards delt Russell Westbrook, Beal is keen on remaining with Washington for one more season until he can opt-out of his contract and hit free agency in the summer of 2022.

This decision bodes well for the Boston Celtics since they would have had to trade Jaylen Brown to acquire Beal if he asked out this offseason.

Instead, they can create space to sign him next summer and form a Big-3. That’s why Stevens is so strict with Boston’s money because he knows it can be used on talent that can help them contend down the road.