Tag: 2020 Celtics mock draft

New ESPN mock draft projects Celtics to take a wing and 2 big men

Some familiar faces pop up in ESPN’s new mock draft, which sees the Boston Celtics going for two frontcourt players and a wing.

ESPN NBA Draft experts Jonathan Givony and Mike Schmitz released a new mock draft highlighting projections for three first round picks for the Boston Celtics in the upcoming draft.

The Celtics ought to have three selections unless a considerable stretch of the regular season is somehow recovered, which this draft seems to agree is unlikely by granting a trio of selections to Boston.

However, if the team was to use the standings as they currently are, the Celtics would pick 17th (via the Memphis Grizzlies), 26th (their own) and 30th (via the Milwaukee Bucks).

For whatever reason, ESPN has the latter two in place, but Boston picking 15th for their pick owed them from the Grizzlies.

That aside, the trio projected to be taken by the Celtics are three players the Celtics Wire have previously highlighted (click the link to see each review); Devin Vassell of Florida State is projected to go at the 15th slot in ESPN’s mock, Isaiah Stewart of Washington 26th and Jalen Smith of Maryland with the 30th overall pick.

Vassell is a fascinating 3-and-D wing with a fair amount of upside, and thus may not be in Boston’s range without some trading up. Stewart could be a helpful rotation option with starter potential, and Smith easily the most interesting of the three with a relatively diverse game.

[lawrence-related id=32386,32381,32372,32364]

Taking stock on who the experts think the Celtics will draft in 2020

In the Celtics Wire’s second composite mock draft, we look at a trio of NCAA experts opinions on who the Boston Celtics should draft.

In the Celtics Wire’s second composite mock draft of 2019-20, we review who three of the NCAA’s top analysts believe the Boston Celtics should be considering in the 2019-20 NBA Draft.

The franchise may well have to rely on prior scouting and interviews from a distance as the entire draft process may be impacted by the same coronavirus pandemic suspending NBA activities in general.

But with plenty of eyes on the film of these prospects at the NCAA level or wherever they played before the draft, it’s very plausible teams can still make solid choices in the absence of a combine and individual workouts.

But who are the Celtics going to look at — and who should they be looking at?

To that end, we’ve again assembled another composite draft with some brief information and video about prospects falling in range of the Celtics’ three first-round picks, assuming the draft order reflects the standings on Mar. 11.

Drawing on the expertise of CBS Sports’ Gary Parrish, NBC Sports’ Rob Dauster and The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie, we’ll briefly review their projected picks for the Celtics.

While Dauster doesn’t mock prospects to specific teams, we’ll assume his order reflects the state of the NBA standings at the moment.

As of now, Boston would end up with the 17th overall pick via the first round selection owed them by the Memphis Grizzlies, the 26th overall pick (their own) and the last pick of the first round (No. 30 overall), owed them by the league-leading Milwaukee Bucks.

So, let’s get started with the 17th pick.

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4, Page 5

Celtics land trio of intriguing prospects in latest mock draft

The latest mock draft from Bleacher Report has the Celtics netting a trio of interesting players.

Even with the sports world grinding to a complete standstill there will still be an NBA Draft at some point in the near future. The pre-draft process is shrouded in uncertainty as we don’t know when, or if, there will be an NBA combine, nor do we know how the evaluation process as a whole will look.

But that won’t stop the basketball world from trying to project how the draft will go, and today Bleacher Report released it’s latest mock draft, in which the Boston Celtics land a trio of interesting prospects with picks 17, 26, and 30.

Pick 17, Saddiq Bey, Villanova

Bey blossomed in his second season at ‘Nova, leading the team in scoring with 16.1 points per game while adding 4.7 rebounds and 2.4 assists. Perhaps most impressively, Bey connected on 45.1% of his shots from beyond the arc.

The Villanova sophomore projects as a player that can come in and hit shots right away, but what makes him truly intriguing is his versatility at both ends of the court.

With only two pure ballhandlers on the roster, the Wildcats often turned to Bey to handle point guard duties, a task he handled with impressive comfort. Defensively, Bey was often tasked with guarding the opponent’s best player, whether that be a point guard or a power forward. He spent the season dealing with electric scorers like Myles Powell and Markus Howard and usually rose to the challenge regardless of who was in front of him.

Bey’s game has the look of one that easily translates to the NBA, and his size, versatility, and shot-making ability present a ton of upside.

Pick 26, Leandro Bolmaro, Barcelona II

There are always some questions regarding international prospects, and those could be amplified this year with the uncertainty surrounding the pre-draft process.

But the 6-7 Argentinian averaged 14.9 points, 3.6 assists, 2.7 rebounds, and 1.8 steals in the LEB Silver League this season at just 19-years-old. The advanced numbers are encouraging, particularly his 103.2 offensive rating and 90.2 defensive rating and his 26.02 assist percentage.

While his numbers may not wow you, he is considered one of the best international prospects in this draft, largely due to his quality ballhandling for a player his size, crafty movement, and elite vision and passing.

His 3-point percentage leaves a lot to be desired, but his jump shot looks workable and would seem to indicate the potential for improvement. At this point in the draft, you’re trying to land someone who can become a solid contributor, and there’s a lot to like about Bolmaro’s game.

Pick 30, Vernon Carey Jr., Duke

Carey Jr. had a strong freshman season at Duke after joining the Blue Devils as a top-five prospect. He averaged 17.8 points and 8.8 rebounds while shooting 57.7 percent from the floor.

His strength is his best asset right now, but he also has decent quickness and a good basketball IQ. He took less than one 3 per game at Duke, but connected on 38.7% of his attempts and can score in a variety of ways.

His conditioning is a concern and he’s not an elite athlete, but at pick 30 he presents a good amount of upside and his rebounding ability alone could make him a useful player.