While it’s never too early to think about the future, it might be a little bit early to start projecting the 2020 NBA Draft.
That hasn’t stopped at least ten intrepid attempts to divine just what NCAA and international prospects will end up come summer, even considering the fact many have hardly played more than a handful of games at their current level and a few none at all.
With as many as three possible first-round selections at their disposal in a deep if not especially eye-popping draft class, where are these analysts projecting the Boston Celtics to have interest?
CelticsWire assembled ten different early projections of the coming NBA Draft to try and answer that question despite the many months between this moment and the actual night of the event.
Drawing on the mock drafts of The Athletic, Bleacher Report, ESPN, Forbes, NBA Draft.net, Rookie Wire, Sports Illustrated, The Sporting News, Stadium and Tankathon, we’ve assembled a composite overview to help you get an idea of some of the prospects to keep an eye on as their respective seasons unfold.
Controlling the Memphis Grizzlies’ first-round selection should it fall outside of the top-six protection it has this season (it will become entirely unprotected next season should it not convey this year), the Milwaukee Bucks’ unprotected first-rounder, as well as their own selection, Boston could add even more young talent to help fill out an increasingly expensive roster.
The Celtics could also package the picks to move into the low lottery to snatch up a high-value player.
It’s important to note that each of these individual projections were recently produced at different times with different methodologies, so their interpretations should be taken with a grain of salt given just how much things can change between now and when players actually hear their names called.
The bad news for fans of Boston is nearly all analysts noted in this article assume the Memphis pick will not convey, meaning moving up for a low lottery pick is likely off the table for the Celtics.
The good news is that the combination of recently-flattened NBA Draft Lottery odds, and lack of actual performance to base both draft prospects and team order on means the range of possible outcomes is still about as wide as things like draft protection and realistic outcomes can allow.
That being said, the range of players projected to be taken with picks under Boston’s control varies considerably as one might expect this early in the basketball year, but there are a few interesting overlaps worth a closer look.
Ashton Hagans, Point Guard (Kentucky)
After an inconsistent freshman season playing for the Wildcats, five-star prospect Hagans elected to return to the school to work on his offensive game after shooting 46.7 % from the field and 27.5 % from deep in his premier collegiate season.
Already an excellent defender, adding some consistent scoring to his game could elevate the sophomore guard firmly into the first round of the 2020 NBA Draft and into the Celtics’ range.
Jordan Nwora, Small Forward (Louisville)
Sidelined by a calf injury in last year’s Draft Combine, Nwora decided his NBA future would be better served with more of an opportunity to show potential draftees what the young wing could provide.
A natural scorer with a deep shot that hit 73.4 % of the 6.1 attempts the 6-foot-7 wing shot in his second season, the Cardinal also pulled down a healthy 7.6 boards per game as well.
Vernon Carey Jr., Forward-Center (Duke)
Something of a throwback as a back-to-the-basket post player able to overwhelm smaller, weaker opponents in the paint, the 6-foot-10 Carey is a bit of a gamble. He’ll need to add to his game to become an effective NBA player worth taking in the first round, but his mobility and shooting mechanics are not bad.
Surprisingly mobile with a good handle for a big his size, you can see flashes of how he might be developed into a more modern bruising big man, but without some growth under Hall of Fame coach Mike Krzyzewski, the son of former Miami Dolphins Offensive Tackle Vernon Carey Sr. may be more of a second-round option.
Obi Toppin, Forward-Center (Dayton)
After making a name for himself as a proficient rebounder in his redshirt freshman season at Dayton, pulling down a healthy 5.6 per game, Toppin turned heads in this summer’s Nike Skills Academy with his shooting. With his newly-expanded game, the young big could conceivably end up in range of Boston’s two late first-round selections.
Now, while he may be shooting at a lower percentage than his rare but accurate treys from his 2018-19 collegiate season (he hit a blistering 52.4 % of them, but only averaged 0.6 attempts per game), the three-point shot has blossomed into a major part of his offensive game with early returns of 33.3% shooting from three, which will benefit him tremendously at 6-foot-9.
Patrick Williams, Guard-Forward (Florida State)
By far the most popular choice among analysts for the Celtics to select this summer, it’s no mystery as to why. With a general lack of obvious successor to lead Boston’s frontcourt of the future, the five-star prospect is an excellent shot-blocker at 6-foot-8 and capable of guarding down to smaller wings while also tearing down rebounds at a high clip.
He’s also no slouch on the offensive end of the court, with a fully-stocked toolkit of floaters, dunks, fadeaways and 3-pointers, which he hit at 44 % in high school, according to Nolegameday.com’s Dustin Lewis. While he has to produce consistently at a higher level of play, the Seminole wing is certainly worth keeping tabs on as the year progresses.
Honorable Mention
Other players who appeared in the ten mock drafts contributing to this early-season draft review include:
Bryan Antoine, 6-foot-5, guard, Villanova; Deni Avdija, 6-foot-7, guard-forward, Maccabi Tel Aviv; Ayo Dosunmu, 6-foot-5, guard, Illinois; Devon Dotson, 6-foot-2, guard, Kansas; Josh Green, 6-foot-6, shooting guard, Arizona; Killian Hayes, 6-foot-4, guard, Ratiopharm Ulm; Aaron Henry, 6-foot-6, forward, Michigan State; Jalen Smith, 6-foot-10, forward-center, Maryland; Cassius Winston, 6-foot-1, point guard, Michigan State; and Kahlil Whitney, 6-foot-6, forward, Kentucky.
With so many possessions ahead of these young players, the actual list of options in Boston’s range of three picks may look quite different. Unexpected development, disappointing shortcomings and injuries — even surprise turns in win-loss records and ping-pong ball bounces in the draft lottery — could radically transform the Celtics’ draft horizons in ways impossible to predict this early in the year.
Nonetheless, it’s a safe bet that the franchise will take advantage of whatever opportunities may present themselves between now and draft night, possibly including trading away some or even all of this year’s assortment of draft options.
For now, it’s likely best to take an increasingly closer look at what might be in that range of options as seasons unfold and profiles raised or lowered. There’s a lot of ball to be played over the next few months, and for most Celtic fans, it’s the surprisingly good ball that team is currently playing that demands their full attention.
Or, most of it, anyway.
