After all the trade rumors leading up to draft night, Danny Ainge and the Celtics ended up staying pretty quiet. Going into the night, the Celtics had three first round draft picks (14,26,30).
Rumors swirled about almost every Celtics player: Gordon Hayward, Marcus Smart, Kemba Walker, Jaylen Brown. Including rumors about trading some or possibly all the first round picks. However, the Celtics chose to draft only two of these first round picks.
Aaron Nesmith:
Nesmith was praised as the best shooter in the draft by ESPN analysts. The Celtics added a lethal three point shooter to come off the bench and hopefully make shots.
Nesmith shot 50% from the college three point line, and he can shoot off the dribble and off the catch and shoot. The Celtics went into the draft knowing they needed to add bench scoring and depth. Nesmith seems like the perfect type of player to fill this position.
Payton Pritchard:
With the 26th pick, the Celtics took the Oregon point guard, Payton Pritchard. Pritchard was a projected second round pick. It seems like a reach pick from Danny Ainge, for Pritchard fits the classic Ainge draft selection: a hard worker; someone who plays at full speed all game.
Adding another undersized/unathletic guard to come off the bench doesn’t seem to be the best fit for the team. With Carsen Edwards and Tremont Waters drafted last year, there will be at least one odd man out.
The Celtics traded the 30th pick to the Memphis Grizzlies for a future draft pick.
Off-season Needs:
After not drafting a center, this seems to be the main hole the team needs to fill. The Celtics need a big rebounding/rim protecting center. Daniel Theis and Rob Williams are fine players, but at this point they would be more effective coming off the bench.
Currently, Gordon Hayward might still be on the trading block. If they flip him, it should be for a starting caliber center. Rumors have emerged regarding a Hayward for Andre Drummond swap.
Drummond would immediately bring rebounding to the Celtics. With a group of wing players (Tatum, Brown, Langford, and now Nesmith), Hayward is not as valuable to the Celtics as he was when the team signed him in 2017.
