NBA Draft rumors 2015: The Celtics badly want to trade up
Danny Ainge is working the phones to try to move into the top 10 of the NBA Draft.
Boston Celtics president Danny Ainge is known for being aggressive, and with a truckload of assets at his disposal, that’s not changing anytime soon. The Celtics have discussed deals with “at least one top-10 team” in an attempt to move up in the NBA Draft, according to Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix.
Boston has picks Nos. 16 and 28 in this draft (and a bunch of other future first-rounders), and you can bet Ainge would love to package that together into an opportunity to get a star player. The Celtics have enough quality young rotation players as it is. They need that impact player to take them to the next level.
With all the news swirling around DeMarcus Cousins, perhaps that top-10 team mentioned is the Sacramento Kings. Boston is known to have an interest in Cousins, and with his situation in Sacramento reportedly unraveling, Trader Danny may look to strike while the iron's hot.
Kristaps Porzingis is a freak
The hype surrounding 19-year-old Kristaps Porzingis is reaching a fever pitch in the days before the draft, and that’s not going to slow down with the release of his official measurements. ESPN’s Chad Ford announced that Porzingis came in at 7’1.25 without shoes with a wingspan of 7’6, the longest in the draft. The fact that he’s only 230 pounds is a bit troubling, but at 19 years old, he has plenty of time to get in the weight room and grow into his body.
NBA Mock Draft
It’s hard not to get excited about a player with Porzingis’ physical tools and skills. It’s not too often you find a 7’2 sweet-shooting, shot-blocking athletic freak. With more people around the league getting a taste of him, rumors have been flying that he could go as high as No. 2 or could even be in play at No. 1. While that likely won’t happen, the mere fact that it’s being discussed highlights what people think of him.
Of course, none of this guarantees NBA success. The draft is littered with workout All-Stars and athletic freaks who turned out to be busts, so Porzingis will have to prove he’s worth the hype when he suits up in the coming years.
Thunder shopping for pick
Mannix had another draft tidbit, this one about the Oklahoma City Thunder trying to snag another pick to go along with No. 14:
OKC has shopped Perry Jones, Jeremy Lamb and Steve Novak the last few days, per league sources. Financially motivated, but looking for pick.
— Chris Mannix (@ChrisMannixSI) June 23, 2015 Perry Jones and Jeremy Lamb are talented young players, but they've never been able to crack the rotation in Oklahoma City, while Steve Novak barely played after coming over from the Utah Jazz.
With Enes Kanter due for a raise and the Thunder flirting with luxury tax territory, dumping one or more of these contracts in favor of a cheap rookie contract would be ideal. Novak is due $3.75 million, Lamb $3.03 million and Jones $2.04 million. It’s not worth keeping that kind of money around if they’re just going to rot on the bench.
Cauley-Stein out to prove doubters wrong
Kentucky’s Willie Cauley-Stein is slated to be a lottery pick thanks in large part to his efforts on the defensive side of the ball. He’s an athletic 7-foot rim protector who can effectively switch pick-and-roll and guard every position. But he displayed a limited offensive game at Kentucky, and skeptics are concerned about him being a liability on that end.
However, Cauley-Stein is determined to prove those people wrong, and he wrote about it for The Players’ Tribune. He talks about all the hard work he’s already done to get ready for the NBA, and he realizes that becoming a threat on offense will put him on the “path to greatness.” He says his role at Kentucky wasn’t to be an offensive force, and he feels his draft workouts prove that he could’ve been if the situation called for it.
This is just Part 1 of a series, so be sure to check back for more as Cauley-Stein makes his journey to the big leagues.
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