no...I did NOT write this piece.

http://www.celticsblog.com/2015/2/9/8001813/celtics-draft-target-willie-cauley-stein



he Boston Celtics may be on the fringe of the Eastern Conference playoff picture, but that does not mean they aren't a "lottery-worthy" team. With the abundance of draft picks both this year and in the future, the Celtics need to get the ball rolling and begin to brainstorm about who they plan on selecting.

Enter Willie Cauley-Stein

Willie Cauley-Stein is currently a junior big man on the undefeated, number one college team in the nation, the Kentucky Wildcats. The 7-footer saw a heavy role as a freshman due to the torn ACL of Nerlens Noel. His role increased as a sophomore as he was an essential piece in Kentucky's road to the NCAA Championship. Unfortunately, he got injured halfway through the tournament. It has been argued that had Cauley-Stein played, Kentucky may have pulled off the win against UConn.

Now Cauley-Stein is a junior and a veteran leader on a young Kentucky team. To say he is the glue that holds the team together is an understatement. He is a big reason why the Wildcats are undefeated.

Primarily, Cauley-Stein is a rim protector: one of the best in college basketball and in the projected draft class. He is a 7-footer with a 7-2 wingspan, and he is super athletic.

He blocks 1.6 shots per game on average, but alters countless shot attempts as well. His length allows him to guard centers and his quickness allows him to guard power forwards. Rim protection is one of the biggest needs for the Celtics. Kelly Olynyk is not athletic enough to be a game-changing defender. Tyler Zeller is the closest thing they've got, but he can't always get the job done.


Aside from rim protection, Cauley-Stein is sneaky with steals. He is averaging 2.3 per 40 minutes, and is always trying to poke the ball out of players hands.


As a rebounder, Cauley-Stein should improve in the pros. He is a bit overshadowed by freshman Karl Anthony-Towns, who tends to be in the paint more often than Stein, but he still comes away with 6.3 per game. But there is one con to his rebounding. Being that he is more athletic and longer than most of his opponents, Cauley-Stein grabs his rebounds just from jumping and reaching rather than boxing out. When he is put up against equally athletic big men, he may have some trouble at first, but boxing out is an easily teachable fundamental.



Offensively, Cauley-Stein is strictly an inside scorer who salvages most of his points off transition buckets, put-backs, and alley oops. He doesn't run the pick and roll often, but has the potential to be a threat in that aspect. He currently averages 8.9 points per game. Cauley-Stein has showed flashes of a post move. He occasionally showcases a hook shot or turnaround, but will have trouble in the NBA because he is not a polished scorer yet. A department where Willie thrives on offense is rebounding. He collects a lot of misses, leading to second chance points. His athleticism carries over to offense...making for some pretty sick dunks.




Why should the Celtics draft him?

Athleticism: Willie Cauley-Stein possesses a rare athleticism that is hard to find in big men. Where there is athleticism, there is potential. Luckily, he's got length too. When you mix athleticism with length, the end result can be exciting. Just see what the Jazz are doing with Rudy Gobert.

Rim Protection: WE NEED RIM PROTECTORS and Cauley-Stein is arguably the best in the potential upcoming draft class.

Transition: Just like you saw in the poster dunk above, Cauley-Stein is a threat in transition. He can dribble in open space, run the lanes, and finish above the rim. He can be useful in simply outrunning his defender.

What is his ceiling?

I like to think of Cauley-Stein as a premature Rudy Gobert. But I also like to think of Rudy Gobert as a premature Rudy Gobert since he hasn't even begun to enter his prime. Stein can be a game-altering defender using his length just like the Jazz big man. He is already 21, so he has most likely hit his athletic peak, but his skill set still has tons of room to grow.

This season, most of the lottery prospects are freshman: Jahlil Okafor, De'Angelo Russell, Stanley Johnson. Cauley-Stein could be the only upper-classman chosen in the lottery. That being said, Cauley-Stein is still an intriguing talent worthy of a top pick.

The only question is...how would he look in green

He seems to have the primary requisites in his athleticism, physique (7' 0", 240), defensive instincts, and ability to run the floor. All the rest is teachable. I'd love to see Dave Cowens work with him.

Sam

Kdp,

7'0" with a 7'2" wingspan isn't that impressive and is NOT Rudy Gobert.   7'2" with a 7'9" wingspan IS impressive and that IS Rudy Gobert.

Having said that Cauley-Stein might be our best bet.  Porzingis,  though, is closer physically to Gobert but is FAR more skilled, probably than either.

bob


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Cauley-Stein in green, should the opportunity present itself, is probably the best bet and biggest no-brainer in my estimation.

Turner or Towns would be very nice, but both will probably be gone before WCS.  Kaminsky is a possibility that could make sense if the other three are all gone by our turn at bat.

Is there any chance Cauley-Stein will still be there when the Celtics pick? Seems unlikely..

he's generally considered the FOURTH best big man in this draft after

Okafor
Towns
Turner

so if that holds Cauley Strin could be there in the 6-10 range.

of course when we make the playoff this year, he will be out of reach I guess.

kdp59 wrote:he's generally considered the FOURTH best big man in this draft after

Okafor
Towns
Turner

so if that holds Cauley Strin could be there in the 6-10 range.

of course when we make the playoff this year, he will be out of reach I guess.

Thanks - so if the Celtics end up about where they are now, he might be available. Something about this kid I like..

NYCelt wrote:Cauley-Stein in green, should the opportunity present itself, is probably the best bet and biggest no-brainer in my estimation.

Turner or Towns would be very nice, but both will probably be gone before WCS.  Kaminsky is a possibility that could make sense if the other three are all gone by our turn at bat.

Not if we make the playoffs. We're only 1 1/2 games out now.

DAMN YOU, DANNY AND BRAD!!


bob



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I really, REALLY want Ainge to keep this team together now and let them make a run.

I'll gladly sacrifice 4-5 picks lower in the draft, for the experience for both young player and COACHING staff to make that run over the last 30 games or so.

Lots of draft picks and trade exemptions to use to move up in the draft for the next few years.

I'm with Danny.

I'd like to see us in the playoffs, but not if we're just going to get crushed.

In the long run, with a draft that may be just deep enough in bigs and guards to land us a couple of quality long-term players this year, we're probably better off not making it.

I'd rather miss out now, in order to be a true playoff competitor in a few seasons.  I don't think many of the current roster are going to be around long anyway, so there's probably not a ton of value to entering the post-season looking for playoff experience for this group. Getting their back-side kicked doesn't develop young players mind-set, it just reinforces losing mentality. I want to be good for the long haul and am OK with a little waiting time.

Nothing makes a young guy hungrier than a taste of glory. Just seeing what the playoffs are like, the intensity of playoff games, would be great for these young guys. Let's face it, we lost how many games and still did not get Duncan? The basketball gods have not been good to us in the last few plus years.

Let's win a little, it is fun to watch, fills the stands more, and gives everyone a little hope for the future.

Rosalie

RosalieTCeltics wrote:Nothing makes a young guy hungrier than a taste of glory.  Just seeing what the playoffs are like, the intensity of playoff games, would be great for these young guys.  Let's face it, we lost how many games and still did not get Duncan? The basketball gods have not been good to us in the last few plus years.

Let's win a little, it is fun to watch, fills the stands more, and gives everyone a little hope for the future.

Rosalie

Rosalie,

Amen.  Nothing succeeds like success and you cannot buy playoff experience, you have to earn it.  You can trade for a player with that experience, like Prince, or sign a free agent with it but in both cases they earned that experience before.

Everybody wants to win, including players on losing teams, but nothing makes you hungrier than a taste of glory.

Last year we were tied for the 5th worst record in the NBA (we picked 6th because Utah won a coin flip, as long as we're talking about how the basketball Gods have been treating us).  This year we're 1 1/2 games out of a playoff berth.  What better way to reward that improvement than with a playoff series?

Yeah, I know the EC stinks, but so what?  Playoff experience is a maturing factor and if we can get that maturation earlier in our rebuild that will make it go faster because our players will grow faster.

Look at Miami the first year LBJ was there.  They lost to Dallas, in an arrogant collapse.  What happened next?  They came back next year with blood in their eyes and won, that's what.  That's why I don't buy the "I want to be in the playoffs but not if we're going to get whupped" argument.  That's what Celtics Pride is all about.  If you get beat you come back harder next time.  If we get whupped this year then next year we come back stronger, harder, meaner, hungrier and take this year's beating out on next year's playoff opponents.


bob



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It's important for all of us to recognize that the Celtics are not developing just a team; they're also developing a culture moving forward. Ideally, expectations of winning will be at the apex of that culture.

Sam

Sam,

This "culture" idea is what I see Stevens developing very well even though he has had his roster changed many times this year.

The "culture" is the main reason that I was so upset with Rondo earlier in the season because he consistently showed to me that he was not going to buy into the "concept" of culture.  He more than had his chance and yet never stepped up to be the leader on a team that was begging for someone to do so.  Admitting that he no longer played defense was the end of the line for me with him because you know that all of his teammates knew he was no longer playing full go for his team. Now that he is gone other guys are trying to assume the leadership of the team which can only be good moving forward.

If you were a free agent this summer, would you even think of joining a developing team that did not seem to have a good culture stemming from the head coach, the assistant coaches and, of course, the players?

I will predict that the positive "culture" factor that is currently with the Cs is going to draw at least one very good free agent by the end of the summer in 2016 and maybe even in the summer of 2015.

Clyde,

Excellent post, and I believe you caught essence of the reasons why Rondo may have been on a different wave length from the rest of the team.

It will be interesting to see how the presence of so many assets affects the timing of Danny's rebuild. Could he draft several players, acquire a free agent or two, and trade for one or two building blocks—all within a short time of one another and without knowing how well they will complement one another? Or is he more likely to do part of the rebuild, see how that works out, then do another part and see how it works out, etc.?

Sam

wide clyde wrote:Sam,

This "culture" idea is what I see Stevens developing very well even though he has had his roster changed many times this year.

The "culture" is the main reason that I was so upset with Rondo earlier in the season because he consistently showed to me that he was not going to buy into the "concept" of culture.  He more than had his chance and yet never stepped up to be the leader on a team that was begging for someone to do so.  Admitting that he no longer played defense was the end of the line for me with him because you know that all of his teammates knew he was no longer playing full go for his team.  Now that he is gone other guys are trying to assume the leadership of the team which can only be good moving forward.

If you were a free agent this summer, would you even think of joining a developing team that did not seem to have a good culture stemming from the head coach, the assistant coaches and, of course, the players?

I will predict that the positive "culture" factor that is currently with the Cs is going to draw at least one very good free agent by the end of the summer in 2016 and maybe even in the summer of 2015.

Wide,

I agree with Sam, a fine post.

I also agree with you about this:
"the Cs is going to draw at least one very good free agent by the end of the summer in 2016 and maybe even in the summer of 2015".

If we make the playoffs, then the "maybe 2015" strengthens because there will be real progress moving forward to show those free agents.  They'll think "they won 25 games the year before and they made the playoffs this year without Rondo and Green.  Must be the coach getting the most out of his players.  If I was on the team we'd go even further".  If we miss the playoffs it will be harder because then there is less substantial proof and I doubt high quality free agents will be impressed with a impending high draft pick and that will make 2016 being the big off-season seem more likely.  Did quality FAs flock to Minny after they lost Love but gained Wiggins and Bennett, two #1 picks?  No.  High quality, in-demand FAs want to go somewhere, while the choice is still theirs, where they can make some noise.  If we make the playoffs and just not go out with a whimper, that will open some eyes.

And I don't see this team of scrappers who rallied from 18 down to beat an elite team like the Hawks going down with a whimper.  No matter what, I predict a dogfight, and that will appeal to FAs.



bob


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Clyde.....You call it "culture", I call it Celtic Pride. And it has to be developed all over again because there is no one here other than Danny, Wyc, Pags, et al..How can we tell these young guys about Celtic Pride without having someone here to develop it. '

I believe in the short time that Stevens has been coaching the Celtics he has learned about the Celtics and the Celtic Way. So...he is so important in helping these guys learn what it is like to be on a team so full of pride and tradition. I am sure there are guys in and out of their practices, coaches (McCarty), Leon Powe, and many many more who have helped along the way.

Great post.
Rosalie