A giant jigsaw puzzle for Celtics

http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/celtics/2016/05/a_giant_jigsaw_puzzle_for_celtics



A giant jigsaw puzzle for Celtics


Danny Ainge’s challenge: Fit all the pieces


Mark Murphy Sunday, May 22, 2016





Credit: Herald file photo
Danny Ainge

 

Danny Ainge is flush on all fronts.

The Celtics president of basketball operations is set to head into the June 23 draft with eight picks, including Nos. 3, 16, 23 and 31, the latter often producing players worth far more than their draft position. He has salary cap room, lots of tradeable contracts, and four impending free agents in Evan Turner, Amir Johnson, Jared Sullinger and Tyler Zeller, each of whom has a varying probability of coming back.

Here’s a quick look ahead at what could be a disruptive summer:

•     Why Dragan Bender is a good reason not to trade No. 3: Think of how Atlanta was able to jam the paint and smother Isaiah Thomas into frustration in their playoff series. Now imagine a 7-footer good enough from the corner to spread out that coverage, and give the Celtics point guard room to breathe again.

The Celtics undoubtedly look at Kelly Olynyk and hope he can become that. Bender, with the addition of some muscle, would surely be that player. Age, especially for an 18-year-old, always plays a role. But Bender has been playing against seasoned European veterans 10 years his senior, including an 11-point game against Kristaps Porzingis shortly before the Latvian was drafted by the Knicks last June.

Toughness can’t be measured until the first brushes with NBA-level contact, but Bender is an attacker. He instinctively drives on closeouts and passes like a guard. He could be around for a long time. Once Ainge starts fielding calls for the pick, many of them attempts to get something for nothing, he’ll have to be careful, especially when Bender comes to mind.

•     Why drafting anyone else at No. 3 would require a major shuffle: Jamal Murray, who is strictly a shooting guard, would be a Bender alternative because of his ability to score as possessor of perhaps the most fluid jumper in the draft. But the choice of Murray would start a chain reaction that doesn’t start with Marcus Smart and Terry Rozier, but instead Avery Bradley. And after Murray, the square pegs start.

Kris Dunn would become their third first-round point guard in three years, and he doesn’t solve the shooting issue. Jalen Brown can score and defend, but is another whose jumper and inefficient game have been called into question. Buddy Hield blossomed last season for the first time in four years at Oklahoma, leaving questions about whether he hit his ceiling. Another who is strictly a shooting guard, with little versatility. The Celtics rely on versatility, especially in the defensive end.

•     Fertile Philly: Philadelphia, with the top pick, must regard the third pick as attainable gold — the best chance of anyone in the draft to land the point guard they badly need.

Herald colleague Steve Bulpett first reported the Celtics’ discussions with Philadelphia about center Jhalil Okafor during February’s trade deadline, but the Sixers now have some lingering reservations.

Philly is nervous about the progress of Joel Embiid, who has been rehabbing his surgically repaired foot at a clinic in Qatar, and may not be ready for summer league competition. Philadelphia will have a problem using two post-oriented big men, both of whom won’t be happy unless they’re starting. But Embiid, with two surgeries on the same foot over the last two years, will require some insurance. That may make the process of prying Okafor away with the third pick a tougher process than initially thought.

Plus, Okafor is limited. He doesn’t have range, he’s a subpar player defensively, and as Milwaukee has discovered with Greg Monroe, traditional post-oriented big men in this league aren’t as smooth a fit as they once were. Witness Sullinger’s deteriorating role with the Celtics as their first-round series wore on against Atlanta.

This is mitigated by Philadelphia’s interest in Providence point guard Kris Dunn, who would solve so many of their backcourt issues in terms of playmaking, scoring and ball pressure. Dunn’s main weakness is shooting, but even the top two players in this draft have questions. How badly does the Sixers’ retooled front office want Dunn? General manager Bryan Colangelo and coach Brett Brown were said to be extremely impressed by Dunn during an interview at the draft combine in Chicago.

But if the Celtics are to pluck someone out of the Sixers’ overloaded frontcourt — don’t forget about Dario Saric — they may get that opportunity further down the draft order with some kind of package involving the 16th pick, and Nerlens Noel as the target. The Everett native is a terrific rim protector, but his offense remains limited to runs to the basket.

The problem lies in his hands — among the worst in the league. But Noel has also never played with a top flight point guard. His scoring opportunities would improve with Thomas, Turner and Smart throwing those lobs.

•     Looking ahead to free agency: Here’s saying those Kevin Durant hopes will have to wait for a year. By going back to Oklahoma City for one more year, he would play his 10th year in the league, and receive a substantial raise upon re-entering a cash-flush market in 2017, when teammate Russell Westbrook is also a free agent.

That’s when the Celtics begin their courtship of the most important free agent in the game — presuming that impending free agent LeBron James never leaves Cleveland.

Depending on what happens in the draft and trades — in other words, anything — the Celtics could be in the hunt for supporting players. That’s more how they would see Al Horford than what he’s going to want — a max contract. Joakim Noah has lost his lift and is no longer the prime interior defender he once was, but his passion and leadership would be invaluable to a young, advancing Celtics team. Though it’s hard to imagine the lifelong Bull leaving Chicago, Noah was irked by the way coach Fred Hoiberg treated him last season.

But look for the Celtics to pay special attention to Golden State forward Harrison Barnes. He’d be the perfect offensive complement to Thomas, and is said to pine for a situation where he can be one of the headliners. The Celtics have that position open.



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