Celtics Add 6 Players in 2016 NBA Draft
Friday, June 24, 2016
The Boston Celtics concluded the 2016 NBA Draft by bringing on 6 players, including three picks in the first round. The Celtics traded two picks away in the second round but kept all of their first round picks despite plenty of rumors and speculation.
"We had alot of discussions of trading that pick, trading down in the draft and trading for future picks and ultimatley there wasn't anything to our liking," said Celtics GM Danny Ainge in his post draft press conference.
The Celtics 2016 Draft
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With the 3rd overall pick, the Celtics took Jaylen Brown out of California.
"He's a great kid, 19 years old who has a man's body, great athleticisim. Sort of the vogue new type of player in the NBA, the versatile player, versatile wing that can play multiple positions offensively and defensively and we think he has a lot of upside but we think he is a 19-year-old kid who can get on the court and play with the big boys," Ainge said.
Brown, a 6'7" forward, averaged 14 points and 5 rebounds per game for California and was named Pac-12 Freshman of the year.
Brown shot 47% from the field , 65% from the free throw line and averaged 3 turnovers per game.
16th Overall Pick
At 16, Boston took Guerschon Yabusele a 6'8" forward out of France. In France, he averaged 11.5 points and 6.8 rebounds per game while shooting 42% from three.
23rd Overall Pick
In their final pick of the first round, Boston took Ante Zizic out of Croatia.
Zizic, a 6'11" center, averaged 13.4 points and 8 rebounds per game in 2015-16.
2nd Round
After trading away three picks in the second round, Boston took Demetrius Jackson out of Notre Dame with the 45th pick in the draft. Jackson was projected to go in the first round by most of the experts.
It appears to be unclear at this time why he fell so far to the Celtics, however, medical issues are what is being rumored.
51st Pick
At pick 51, Boston selected forward Ben Bentil out of Providence College.
"I think the highlight of Ben is that he is a tough kid and he is a good shooter, we like his shooting. He can spread the floor and keep defenses honest," Ainge said.
At Providence, Ben Bentil averaged 21.2 points per game overall and 22.9 points per game in conference play, making him the leading scorer in the Big East.
58th Pick
In their final pick, Boston took Iowa State forward Abdel Nadar. Nadar averaged 12.8 points and 5 rebounds last season .
NBA Draft
Ben Simmons was the first pick of the draft going to the 76ers, while Brandon Ingram went 2nd to the Lost Angeles Lakers.
For the full draft see below.
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