Report: Celtics look to trade up to take Texas' Turner

CSNE

A. SHERROD BLAKLEY

Could that coveted 7-foot rim protector be the Celtics' top pick Thursday night in the draft?

If it is, they'll probably have to trade up from their current 16th spot to get him.

Andrew Perna of RealGM.com, citing "multiple sources," reports the Celtics are trying to trade up in order to draft Myles Turner, a 19-year-old, 7-footer from Texas. Turner, who averaged 4.2 blocks as a freshman for the Longhorns, is projected to go 12th to the Utah Jazz in CSNNE.com Celtics Insider A. Sherrod Blakely's latest mock draft, and is a Top 10 pick in other projections.

The Celtics, of course, have a bevy of picks, in addition to the 16th and 28th in the first round, that can be used as trade chips. An earlier report Saturday from longtime NBA writer Chris Sheridan said the Knicks might find a trade partner in the Celtics if New York deals the No. 4 overall pick Thursday night.

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Turner looks to be quite talented, but he is not as likely as Cauley-Stein to make as much of a contribution next season.

He may have more 'upside' (a word I absolutely despise), but will take longer to play valuable minutes to help the Celtics continue their climb (at least as fast as some other picks may) right away. At this time in the Cs progress, I would hate to see a first round (top ten if they actually trade up) pick not be in the top nine players on the team right from the start of the season.

I would also be very concerned with his running style/leg "issues" that have been written about. I certainly do not know how any of them may hinder him (if at all), but things that are "leg related" for a 19 year old young man may warrant very close scrutiny prior to selecting him.

most of what I've read says that teams are not worried about his legs now.

but Worcester wrote in another thread that it could be his rapid growth or something or the other, but he wouldn't play him much over 40 games until his 21YO.

WCS is more NBA ready now.
Turner is as good or better a shot blocker than WCS.
WCS is a better over all defensive player, with his ability to switch on smaller players.
Turner already has a good mid range shot, with range to the college 3 now.

IF Ainge does go after Turner, I  could still see him adding a vet center like Koufas.

Some day, when the draft is over, it would be interesting to start a thread on our most disliked basketball-related terms.  Clyde despises "upside."  Long ago, I got so sick of "rim protector" that I started using "intimidator" to such excess that I soon tired of that one.  I refuse to use the term "point guard" because I believe it's becoming too closely associated with scoring at the expense of conveying the notion of a "floor general" (a term that is now running on thin ice as far as I'm concerned).

We all have our quirks in terms of word usage.  And the commonality among many of the quirks seems to be that the complexities, nuances and evolution of basketball make it difficult to settle on terms that are sufficiently distinctive without wearing out their welcome.

Although bashing a lot of sports writers seems high on my list of essentials, I have to admit that it can't be easy to keep coming up with a variety of terms that arrest attention rather than dulling it over time.  But I have to credit a vicarious interest in sports journalism with having a major impact on my early career in research.

In my first job, I was given the task of writing monthly reports for two different clients on the amount of magazine and newspaper advertising space they were running versus their competitors.  Boring by definition!  By the second month, words such as "lead," "win," "gain," and "loss" had already become so over-used in my reports that I would typically fall asleep proofreading them.

So I began an intense study of terminology utilized in sports reporting.  I found descriptions of sports activities to be refreshingly active in conveying the excitement of the games and even the standings.  So I started adapting sports verbiage to my dull old business reports.  I'd come up with sentences such as, "After limping out of the gate, XYZ Company has vaulted into third place on the heels of a major surge in advertising visibility."  That little process may seem trite in today's short-cut, text-happy society, as some people feel the only good communication is that which is dumbed down to their level.  But at least it got me a raise back in the day while reinforcing my lifelong conviction that words will always be important.

In a sense, that early experience acted as a sort of impersonal mentor in my approach to business writing.  So (are you ready for this segue?), I want to wish Happy Father's Day to words and all they mean to me.  And, of course, to all the dads and sons, daughters, grand kids and wives of dads out there.

Sam

Sam,I hate the terms....the best player available and combo guard.

International,

Good choices.  I don't like either one myself.  Actually, i don't mind the actual words.  I just don't like what they stand for.  I like drafting for need, and I like players that are really good at something rather than being sort of good at multiple things.

My only problem is that, if I keep finding new terms to dislike, there may soon be no terms that I can use.  Hey, maybe if we made Spanish the language of the board, we could find new terms.

Sam

Sam,

Certainly nothing against people who speak Spanish, but if the board goes to Spanish I won't be able to understand anything. I often have enough trouble understanding English.

Ditto, Clyde.

Sam

My least favorite word when it comes to an NBA prospect: potential

W,

Perhaps neck-and-neck with when it comes to women.

Sam

Don't know much about this kid. Just watched a couple of highlight type vids, and kind of like what I see. Great shot blocking instincts. Can also shoot. The knock on him is that he is not overly "athletic", but to me he seems quick and coordinated, with good body control. I guess "athletic" means jumping and running speed, but to me, the best athletes have good body control. Also, he seems kind of bright. Wouldn't be too upset if Ainge managed to get him.

Shamrock,

I assume you've read about the skepticism concerning his gait.  It's not a matter of his athleticism; it;s conjecture about whether his running style could cause him chronic injuries down the road.

Sam