Who Should Represent The Celtics At The Draft Lottery?

Who should represent C's at lottery?
May, 1, 2014
MAY 1 11:11 AM ET
By Chris Forsberg | ESPNBoston.com


As the calendar flips, we're now inside of three weeks until the NBA's Draft Lottery set for Tuesday, May 20. The Celtics own a 10.3-percent chance at the top overall pick, though their most likely landing spot is at No. 6 after losing a random drawing tie-breaker with the Utah Jazz last month after the two teams finished with identical records.

Celtics.com provided a nice visual representation of each team's chances at a given pick as part of their draft lottery Q&A:





Yes, the Celtics will need a little luck at the lottery to vault into a top spot. Ping-pong balls will determine the top 3 selections and the remaining teams will be slotted in inverse order of record. The real question is who should represent Boston at the lottery later and serve as the face of the franchise during the national TV broadcast?

An unofficial rundown of some of our top candidates:


• Tommy Heinsohn: Sure, he struck out swinging in 2007 (though things worked out just fine), so maybe he's due for a hit.

• Lucky the Leprechaun: Name says it all with team mascot.

• Celtics Legend: Bill Russell with all his rings? The Cooz? C's could send someone that represents their championship past.

• Campbell Grousbeck: The Cleveland Cavaliers have found success with owner Dan Gilbert's bow-tied son, Nick, while twice winning the lottery recently. The Celtics could send Wyc's son, Campbell, who played a particularly influential role in bringing this ownership group to Boston.

• Danny Ainge: Let the GM get an up-close look at where he'll be picking.

• Louis Corbett: Celtics brought in 12-year-old New Zealand native this season to fulfill his wish to see an NBA game before he loses his vision.

• Meb Keflezighi: Knows how to finish first in Boston.

• Boston Marathon Survivor/Responder: Boston Strong.

• Rajon Rondo: Rondo seemed open to the possibility when asked back in February and would cement the idea that he's main building block moving forward.

• Brian Scalabrine: If Golden State doesn't want him, Celtics fans sure love him.

• Brad Stevens: If only to watch his unfazed reaction if the Celtics vaulted into a top spot (or maybe a rare emotional outburst after enduring the loss-filled 2013-14 campaign).

• Gino lookalike: We didn't see much of him this past season, but the smooth-grooving American Bandstand dancers always appears when things are going well for Boston.

• Celtics superfan: Suit Coat Santa? Balcony Gino? Jack Black Guy? With no playoffs, they've all got time on their hands.

• Cedric Maxwell: With news that the Los Angeles Lakers will send James Worthy to the lottery, Celtics could counter with chief Worthy antagonizer (bonus points if he displayed choke sign at any point).



bob



.

Only one choice for me

Louis Corbett: Celtics brought in 12-year-old New Zealand native this season to fulfill his wish to see an NBA game before he loses his vision.

Can you imagine the thrill this would be for him and the memories of it for the rest of his life.

beat

QUESTION

Ok how exactly does this work. Obviously when the team for the first pick is drawn, the remainder of their balls are removed from the equation and I assume that is factored in as a % chance for the second pick but how can you make a true odds chance for the remaining teams for the second pick if you don't know who the first pick is ...........and so on.

Do I sound confused?

Some one can try to explain, and I'll try to understand. (sounds like song lyrics)

beat

I vote for Tommy Heinsohn. His unfiltered comments and expressions would be the most entertaining part of the whole thing.

beat wrote:QUESTION

Ok how exactly does this work. Obviously when the team for the first pick is drawn, the remainder of their balls are removed from the equation and I assume that is factored in as a % chance for the second pick but how can you make a true odds chance for the remaining teams for the second pick if you don't know who the first pick is ...........and so on.

Do I sound confused?

Some one can try to explain, and I'll try to understand. (sounds like song lyrics)

beat

Beat,

The ping pong balls are chosen for the top 3 picks.
Once #1 is picked, I do not believe they remove #1's remaining ping pong balls.
I believe they would just put that ball back and keep picking until they pick a different team for pick #2.
Then they do the same for pick #3.
Then picks 4-14 are based on the reverse order of the lottery teams records.
Even if they did remove the teams ping pong balls when a team is chosen, I don't see how it would impact the chances for the remaining teams for picks #2 and #3.

Hi,
I voted for #2 on the list. Unfortunately I couldn't add: the real one.
Actually, I don't care as long as he/she/it wins #1 for Celtics.

AK

Bob, I like this story and our odds compared to what I read recently: http://www.nba.com/news/2014-nba-draft-order/ . I get the concept that the ping pong balls are just for the first 3 picks, but I can't understand how we have a 10.3 percent chance at the top pick, but lottery odds of only 8.8 percent, according to the NBA site. Hawk

Hawk,
I don't know where you got 10.3%
The 8.8% come from the probability table: probability of Boston to get #1 is .088

AK

Sinus007, I got it from the top of this thread:

"As the calendar flips, we're now inside of three weeks until the NBA's Draft Lottery set for Tuesday, May 20. The Celtics own a 10.3-percent chance at the top overall pick, though their most likely landing spot is at No. 6 after losing a random drawing tie-breaker with the Utah Jazz last month after the two teams finished with identical records." Hawk

The Celtics have a roughly 33% chance at a top-3 pick. That may be the most important probability in all of this.

A one in three chance isn't bad.


KJ

One always feels less of a person for voting against young people—especially young people with afflictions.  But, as a self-proclaimed steward of Celtics history, I’m hoping history can repeat itself and the best-ever example of Celtics elan can receive a major boost when he badly needs it.

In the early 1950s, when Bill Russell was still in high school, the Celtics weren’t a bad team.  They regularly finished over .500.  When Russell came along, he joined a team with a fearsome offense; and he provided the rebounding and defense.

The catalyst in the early 50s—the primary reason why they were ripe for becoming a Tyranny when Russell arrives was Robert Joseph Cousy.  Without griping or making waves, Cooz simply led by example as the Celts would come up against the iron of the East (mainly Syracuse and the Knicks).  The fight they exhibited was very similar to that of last year’s team, but—like last year’s team, they just didn’t quite have what it took to become major contenders.  Skip to the present when the Celtics leader in the clubhouse is also a point guard who may very well be depended on to lead the Celtics to offensive dominance so that an influx of defensive reinforcements can finish the job of making them contenders.  It’s a direct parallel with the past in my opinion.

But no, I’m not going to nominate Rondo.  Maybe another year, when the Celtics are more on the upswing.

Back to The Cooz.  As we all know, he lost his beloved Missy this past year.  He loved her so much that, every year when they went to Florida from Worcester, he’d have her car shipped down so she could take some comfort in seeing it outside despite the fact that she was experiencing severe dementia.

Since her death, the 85-year-old Cooz has become a virtual recluse.  He sold all his memorabilia several years ago so that a relative could go to college.  He was unceremoniously let go by Comcast while we were still on Boston.com.  He presumably still has his daughters for support, but he’s vitually out of sight out of mind in professional basketball.

I’d like to see Cooz representing the Celtics like the champion and legend he is.  Maybe he can make some of the same magic that allowed the Celtics to pick him out of a hat (although Red didn’t feel it was good magic at the time).  Maybe he can be the same kind of catalyst that combined with Bill Russell’s own magic to create The Tyranny.  At the very least, Cooz can remind followers of pro basketball that the Celtics will always be associated with highly ethical, classy, incredibly motivated, innovative yet traditional principles.  And I would hope that the honor would jump start Rapid Robert’s own memory about what he gave to his journey and what his journey is still giving to him.

Sam

Sam, That is an inspired idea! Hawk

tjmakz wrote:

beat wrote:QUESTION

Ok how exactly does this work. Obviously when the team for the first pick is drawn, the remainder of their balls are removed from the equation and I assume that is factored in as a % chance for the second pick but how can you make a true odds chance for the remaining teams for the second pick if you don't know who the first pick is ...........and so on.

Do I sound confused?

Some one can try to explain, and I'll try to understand. (sounds like song lyrics)

beat

Beat,

The ping pong balls are chosen for the top 3 picks.
Once #1 is picked, I do not believe they remove #1's remaining ping pong balls.
I believe they would just put that ball back and keep picking until they pick a different team for pick #2.
Then they do the same for pick #3.
Then picks 4-14 are based on the reverse order of the lottery teams records.
Even if they did remove the teams ping pong balls when a team is chosen, I don't see how it would impact the chances for the remaining teams for picks #2 and #3.

OK all I'm really confused about is this how can one figure the odds of getting the second or third picks until AFTER the first pick is known? Say the top ten WORST teams have decreasing balls 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 in the hopper. 55 total balls. Whoever is picked for number 1 the odds of getting number 2 would change depending on who number 1 was. To me the only true odds one can figure is the first pick with ALL the balls in the hopper.

beat

And the answer is...


Celtics owner Steve Pagliuca.  Go Pags!  Go Celtics!


http://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2014/05/02/steve-pagliuca-will-represent-celtics-draft-lottery/V0wRKaiXU1fynBeudTdAWN/story.html



Steve Pagliuca will represent Celtics at draft lottery

By Baxter Holmes  | GLOBE STAFF   MAY 03, 2014



How is Celtics co-owner Steve Pagliuca doing these days?

“Just trying to feel lucky,” he said with a laugh Friday.


His team is hoping for just that after it announced that Pagliuca will be representing the Celtics at the NBA draft lottery May 20 in New York.

This season, after finishing with a 25-57 record, which was tied with Utah for fourth-worst in the league, the Celtics will have a 10.3 percent chance at the top pick and a 33.4 percent chance of a top-three pick.

But the Celtics have been burned in the lottery before — including the last time they were in it.

In 2007, they had a 19.9 percent chance at the top pick and a 55.8 percent chance at a top-three pick after finishing with the league’s second-worst record (24-58).

Instead, they fell to the fifth spot in the draft.


Tom Heinsohn represented the Celtics at that lottery, and Celtics fans hope Pagliuca can bring them more luck this time around. As a good luck charm, Pagliuca said he’s planning on wearing a tie that Celtics patriarch Red Auerbach gave him in 2002 when a group that included Pagliuca bought the team.

It’s an older tie, Pagliuca said, perhaps from the 1950s, and it’s blue with a green stripe.

“I think it even has a little leprechaun on it,” he said.

Pagliuca said he’s also open to any suggestions.

“I’m excited,” he said. “It should be fun.”

The Celtics will have a second pick in the first round, No. 17, which they received from the Brooklyn Nets as part of the blockbuster deal last summer.



bob



.

Thanks, Hawk.  I doubt it will happen because, with the exception of a few old players who live in the Boston area at least part of the year (e.g., Havlicek, Jo Jo and occasionally Tom Sanders), one who's tied to the Celtics media machine (Heinsohn), and one who's on the payroll to make occasional appearances (Russell), the Celtics don't have a great track record of honoring their legends in perpetuity, except for rare events (e.g., the unveiling of Russ' statue) which benefit the team more than the old guys.

But, without The Cooz, there would indisputably be no Boston Celtics. And I know, first-hand, in both basketball and baseball, how much it means to the old guys to have their legacies appreciated with more than lip service.

Besides, what player in Celtics history could perform more magic with balls than Bob Cousy?  After all, ping pong balls are just shrunken basketballs.

Sam

I will go if they have a problem getting someone!

Rosalie