Blakely: Celtics' top five draft picks under Ainge

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Blakely: Celtics' top five draft picks under Ainge
June 21, 2015, 4:30 pm





Celtics Draft History Under Danny Ainge







BOSTON -- My, how things have changed since Danny Ainge took over as the basketball czar of the Boston Celtics in 2003.

Leading up to his first draft, Ainge’s lone pick was the 56th overall.

They selected Ohio rebounding stud Brandon Hunter, whose NBA shelf life lasted a total of two seasons.

Ainge is back on the clock this season, but the Celtics’ draft prospects are radically different than his first go-around.

He comes into Thursday’s draft with a total of four picks which includes the 16th and 28th overall picks in the first round, and the 33rd and 45th picks in the second.

The players may change and the Celtics’ draft position may shift, but the focus regardless of where they are selecting remains the same.

“It’s always about adding the best player to help your team,” Ainge told CSNNE.com. “Sometimes it’s short-term, sometimes it’s down the road a little. But you’re always trying to find the best players to help you win games.”

During his 12 previous drafts, Ainge has had his share of successes as well as failures such Fab Melo in 2012, Marshon Brooks in 2011 (they traded him to Brooklyn for JaJuan Johnson who actually turned out to be a worst pro than Brooks), and J.R. Giddens in 2008 (both DeAndre Jordan and Omer Asik were taken in the second round of that year’s draft).

But Ainge has had his share of draft picks that worked out better than expected.

Here we take a look at five of Ainge’s best draft hits here in Boston.


5. Jared Sullinger, Ohio State

Draft selection: First round, 21st overall in 2012.

Summary: Sullinger was projected as a lottery (top-14) pick, but he was medically red-flagged by a number of teams that were concerned about his back being an issue in the NBA. Sullinger saw his stock slide all the way down to Boston which turned out to be a good thing for all involved. Sullinger had a chance to play as a rookie without having the weight of carrying a team on his shoulders like he had to do in high school and in college and in all likelihood would have had if he were taken in the lottery. In addition, Sullinger was able to learn both on and off the court from the likes of Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett.

For Boston, the Celtics acquired a player whose talent was far better than his draft position. And while his back eventually required surgery, Sullinger has been a solid performer for the Celtics since they drafted him. And if he’s able to get his body in the kind of condition the Celtics envision, the 6-foot-9 forward will be even better going forward.


4. Ryan Gomes, Providence

Draft selection: Second Round, 50th overall in 2005

Summary: Very little was expected of Gomes during his first season with Boston. But he would prove to be yet another example of what happens when talent meets opportunity. A multi-player trade with Minnesota coupled with an injury to Kendrick Perkins paved the way for Gomes to play significant minutes his first season.

The former Providence College All-American would finish his rookie season averaging 7.6 points and 4.9 rebounds per game, good enough for a spot on the all-NBA rookie second team. He wound up playing 482 games over the course of eight seasons, the first two in Boston.


3. Tony Allen, Oklahoma State

Draft selection: First round, 25th overall in 2004

Summary: Injuries and off-the-court issues seemed to follow Allen early in his career. But when healthy, Allen showcased a defensive brand of basketball that stood out from the others. As important as Allen’s role off the Celtics bench was during the team’s 2008 title run, he has really made a name for himself since signing with the Memphis Grizzlies in 2010. The 6-foot-4 Allen has been a perennial all-NBA defender whose play has been pivotal to Memphis morphing into one of the league’s elite teams defensively. Not re-signing Allen in 2009 has been one of the more glaring missteps made by Ainge.


2. Jeff Green, Georgetown

Draft selection: First round, 5th overall in 2007

Summary: With the league’s worst record and thus the best shot at the top pick, the Celtics felt good about landing Greg Oden or Kevin Durant -- the consensus top two picks that year. Instead they wound up with the fifth overall pick and elected to go with Jeff Green.

While the Celtics liked Green, truth be told they liked Ray Allen -- a veteran who was available for the taking -- a lot more.

So they traded the Green pick along with players, to Seattle (now Oklahoma City) for Allen.

Allen was the first major acquisition by Ainge that elevated them to deep playoff status. Signing Allen would open the door for future signings down the road that proved pivotal in Boston’s quest to regain its place among the NBA’s elite.

Green would eventually wind up playing for Boston after the team traded Kendrick Perkins for Green in 2010. But as talented as Green was, he never played with the kind of consistency Boston was looking for. That ultimately led to them trading him to Memphis in January.

Many of the same concerns in Boston re-appeared in Memphis which is in part why Green elected to opt-in to the final year of his contract which pays him $9.2 million next season.


1. Al Jefferson, Prentiss (Miss.) High School

Draft selection: First round, 15th overall in 2004

Summary: The selection of Jefferson was historic on multiple levels for Boston. He was the first high school player that the Celtics drafted (Kendrick Perkins was acquired in 2003 by Boston on draft night, but was actually selected by Memphis).

In addition, he was arguably the key piece in Boston’s Big Three of Paul Pierce, Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett coming to fruition.

Boston shipped a number of players to Minnesota for Garnett in 2007, but none was more important to the deal getting done than Jefferson.

In his three seasons with the Celtics, Jefferson showcased an offensive game that even now ranks among the best in the league.

For Minnesota to move a player as talented as Garnett, they had to get a promising youngster of Jefferson’s caliber in return.

And while there was no playoff share or championship ring for Jefferson following Boston bringing home Banner 17 in 2008, there was no mistaking the importance of Jefferson in making it happen.

Had the Celtics not been able to develop him into a borderline all-star during his first three seasons, Minnesota would have had no interest trading Garnett for him and other players.

And if the Celtics had not pulled off that deal, who knows how long it would have taken for them to win a championship?



bob
MY NOTE:  This might be even worse than Blakely's usual pap.  Sully is #5 while Ryan Gomes, an overachieving yet marginal NBA player, is #4?  Maybe it's just me, but I don't hold 2nd round picks that blossom into serious NBA talents against GMs.  Chandler Parsons, Draymond Green and DeAndre Jordan were all there for the picking by every GM in the first round and every single one of them passed.  Every.  Single.  One.  If getting a higher draft pick increases the chances you'll be drafting higher talent then a 2nd rounder is a long shot at best.  You wouldn't call someone who bet on a longshot at the track, and had that horse come in, a "horse racing genius", would you?  No, you'd say he got lucky.  Blakely's whole argument about Jeff Green is pure unadulterated nonsense.  That was a draft day trade.  I can't remember whether Danny picked Jeff Green and then traded his rights to Seattle or if Danny traded the pick etal for Ray but you don't just cobble a trade involving 3 players (Allen, Delonte West and Wally) and two draft picks (#5 Jeff Green to Seattle and #35 Glen Davis to Boston) together in the 5 minutes Boston was on the clock.  So, the claim by Blakely that Jeff Green was one of Danny's picks is baloney.  He was picked, even if it was by Danny, specifically because that's who Seattle wanted.

How about Avery Bradley, Blakely?  You think Ryan Gomes is a better draft pick by Danny than Avery Bradley?  If Big Al was the #1 pick because he was the key player in the KG deal, how about Delonte West, that key player that went to Seattle for Ray Allen?  No Ray Allen, no KG.  No KG and then it's Big Al anchoring our defense in the 2008 season and not KG and that would have been a very porous defense indeed.  Danny drafted Delonte too, and he was a #24 pick too.  Not a bad eye for talent in the late first round.  Of course, using Blakely's definition of "Danny's draftees" (see my comments about Jeff Green above), Blakely wouldn't include Danny's drafting of Rajon Rondo, since he was technically drafted by Phoenix and traded ON DRAFT DAY to Boston.  Same with the hero of game 2 of the 2008 finals, Leon "junkyard dog" Powe, who was a #49 pick by Denver and traded ON DRAFT DAY to Boston.  Same with Big Baby, a DRAFT DAY PICK UP as part of the Ray Allen deal.  In fact, Kelly Olynyk wouldn't be a Danny draft pick, using Blakely's definition, since he was actually drafted by Dallas and then traded to Boston.

As far as not re-signing Tony Allen being one of Danny's glaring missteps, is there anybody else besides me who remembers that Tony specifically, explicitly stated that he wanted to go somewhere else because he wanted the chance to be a starter and he didn't see that happen as long as Paul Pierce and Ray Allen were in Boston? If Tony was intent on leaving, then short of trading Pierce or Allen to create the opening in the starting line up, what could Danny do about that? Tony didn't leave because of money or because Danny didn't pursue him, he had his own agenda.

Same Blakely shit, different day.


.

Bob, I agree with your assessments, except the one on TA. I recall that early on, Allen, who'd been injured, wanted a longer-term contract than Ainge was willing to provide. Only after Allen and the Celtics were ready to part ways did I hear anything of his wanting to leave, starting elsewhere, etc.. Also, I think Ainge, to his credit, has acknowledged that not resigning TA was a big mistake. Hawk

Bob,

Count me as one who recalls Tony's huge desire to leave, although I'm not exactly sure of the sequence of related events.  Also, there were questions about his durability and ongoing skepticism about how much his defensive presence would be countered by offensive mediocrity (sort of like what I've read about Marcus Smart).  Moreover, there was a time when there were a lot of doubts concerning his character and whether he would be able to stay out of legal trouble.

The fact is that no executive bats 1.000 in personnel transactions, and it's easy to cherry pick and belabor allegedly negative examples while ignoring or downplaying positive ones.  Such selective and frequently simplistic crap usually says more about the biases of the "evaluators" than about Danny's performance.  In particular, his dealings around draft time have characterized him as a particularly opportunistic maneuverer.

If one does a reasonably objective analysis of Danny's transactions (including draft picks, draft day moves, trades and free agent signings) and considers the context of mediocre Celtics assets within which he has typically worked, he looks pretty good.  Certainly good enough to make me look forward to what he may be able to accomplish when operating from a relative position of strength.

Go Danny!

Sam

sam wrote:Bob,

Count me as one who recalls Tony's huge desire to leave, although I'm not exactly sure of the sequence of related events.  Also, there were questions about his durability and ongoing skepticism about how much his defensive presence would be countered by offensive mediocrity (sort of like what I've read about Marcus Smart).  Moreover, there was a time when there were a lot of doubts concerning his character and whether he would be able to stay out of legal trouble.

The fact is that no executive bats 1.000 in personnel transactions, and it's easy to cherry pick and belabor allegedly negative examples while ignoring or downplaying positive ones.  Such selective and frequently simplistic crap usually says more about the biases of the "evaluators" than about Danny's performance.  In particular, his dealings around draft time have characterized him as a particularly opportunistic maneuverer.

If one does a reasonably objective analysis of Danny's transactions (including draft picks, draft day moves, trades and free agent signings) and considers the context of mediocre Celtics assets within which he has typically worked, he looks pretty good.  Certainly good enough to make me look forward to what he may be able to accomplish when operating from a relative position of strength.

Go Danny!

Sam

sam,

There will almost certainly be movement within the next week or two (say, between today, through draft day and up to when the free agent signing moratorium is lifted and teams want to clear space or add players because they gave up 2-for-1s, etc).

1.  Danny and Brad have both said that the Celtics are a bit too young, overall.

2.  Danny has said that 4 draft picks, this draft, is too many.

The trick, in all this, is finding someone to trade with.  You can't force someone to accept a trade.  And then, there's the posturing; e.g. is Vlade Divac merely posturing over Cousins being unavailable?  If not, then why are there rumors swirling around Cousins going to Denver, as well as those around him coming here?

All I know is that Danny has too many draft picks and he knows it and that generates motivation, at least on one side.


bob


.

Bob,

The big unknown is where the "other sides" stand.  There have been previous instances when Danny has been hot to trot but little-or-nothing happened because nothing suitable surfaced.

Four nights away......

Sam

Sam, Bob, Several reporters covered the Tony Allen situation at the time. On balance I think DA has done pretty well, but to say that TA left because he was disenchanted at the start of negotiations is not accurate. He wanted a three-year contract and DA wanted no more than two. Hawk Excerpt from May 2011 ESPN account below:

"Last week at his season-ending gathering with the media, Ainge reflected on the Tony Allen situation, noting that it was the length of the deal that led to the initial snag (Boston originally offered a two-year deal with eyes toward the massive roster overhaul they've lined up after next season).
In light of the Tony Allen lesson, the Celtics might have to make a player like Glen Davis a priority this offseason. Greg M. Cooper/US Presswire

"We [eventually] offered Tony the same deal that he ended up getting in Memphis, but maybe ... [if] I made that offer initially [Allen would have signed in Boston]. But we were trying to maintain our flexibility, not this summer, but the following summer. It wasn't about money. It was about years and flexibility. I've already had a couple of questions in regard to that about the money or why would you not sign a contract for money? It had nothing to do with that. It has to do with flexibility and building a team. And so with Ray and KG's contracts sort of being done at the end of next year, we sort of wanted to keep that -- a lot of cap flexibility, and that was the issue.
"But we were willing, when all was said and done, to do that. So, anyway that was what I was saying, had I done it sooner, he might not have been wooed by Memphis."
http://sports.espn.go.com/boston/nba/columns/story?columnist=forsberg_chris&id=6560546

hawksnestbeach wrote:Sam, Bob, Several reporters covered the Tony Allen situation at the time.  On balance I think DA has done pretty well, but to say that TA left because he was disenchanted at the start of negotiations is not accurate. He wanted a three-year contract and DA wanted no more than two. Hawk   Excerpt from May 2011 ESPN account below:

  "Last week at his season-ending gathering with the media, Ainge reflected on the Tony Allen situation, noting that it was the length of the deal that led to the initial snag (Boston originally offered a two-year deal with eyes toward the massive roster overhaul they've lined up after next season).
In light of the Tony Allen lesson, the Celtics might have to make a player like Glen Davis a priority this offseason. Greg M. Cooper/US Presswire

  "We [eventually] offered Tony the same deal that he ended up getting in Memphis, but maybe ... [if] I made that offer initially [Allen would have signed in Boston]. But we were trying to maintain our flexibility, not this summer, but the following summer. It wasn't about money. It was about years and flexibility. I've already had a couple of questions in regard to that about the money or why would you not sign a contract for money? It had nothing to do with that. It has to do with flexibility and building a team. And so with Ray and KG's contracts sort of being done at the end of next year, we sort of wanted to keep that -- a lot of cap flexibility, and that was the issue.
  "But we were willing, when all was said and done, to do that. So, anyway that was what I was saying, had I done it sooner, he might not have been wooed by Memphis."
http://sports.espn.go.com/boston/nba/columns/story?columnist=forsberg_chris&id=6560546

hawk,

I see Danny as being 1-1 in that department. He let James Posey go rather than offer him that extra year and it was a good thing he did. Posey's game evaporated within a year or two and was virtually unusable and untradeable the last 2 years of his contract. If he should have offered the longer contract to Tony but was gun shy because of Posey (Posey left after 2008, Tony left in 2010) there is at least an explanation for it.

When Ray left and Danny got nothing for him, that produced a change in him. From that point on if a player didn't sound committed to staying and "getting with the program", Danny started looking around for a trading partner. He became determined to NOT give up an asset he worked to acquire for nothing. We are the sum total of our experiences, good and bad, and these type of events seem to scar Danny mentally and emotionally and change his behavior. He already was "Trader Danny" but Tony Allen, Ray Allen made him even more so, as Rondo found out.


bob



.

Nicely put, Bob.  Nice to have a guy at the helm who actually grows from his experiences.

Sam

Bob, I agree that no one's perfect and DA is learning from mistakes. Just wanted to set the record straight on Tony Allen. Sometimes after a player is traded or a worker leaves non-sports employment, you hear how the person wanted to bail and how the organization is better off without him. Some of this followed TA out the door, but was not deserved. Now R.A..? For me, that's a different story. Hawk