Danny Ainge is getting to work. The Boston Celtics are ready to build something bigger this offseason and they certainly have the tools to do so. It all starts with the draft for the Celtics and Ainge is already eyeing moves as Boston continues to get linked to trade deals in order to move up the board. With free agents like LaMarcus Aldridge and Kevin Love presumably off the market, will Ainge be aggressive when it comes to the NBA Draft?
According to Gery Woelfel of JournalTimes.com, the Celtics are shopping their two late first-round picks in order to move into the top ten. The Celtics currently own the No.16 and No.28 pick in the draft. After this season, they also own the rights to 15 picks over the next two drafts. That lines up Boston to make pretty much any move they want to this season if it is a real priority for them. Boston has been stockpiling draft picks over the past two years starting with the trades of Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett. They were not intending on bringing in a huge crop of rookies. They wanted to include them in trade packages and this is the season that all begins.
According to A.Sherrod Blakley of CSNNE.com, the Celtics area eyeing draft moves for players like Justise Winslow or Willie Cauley-Stein as they aim to get a solid defender on the roster. The Celtics were first linked to both Kevin Love and LaMarcus Aldridge in free agency to help fill those needs. However, Love has told the media he is staying in Cleveland while Aldridge is favored to go to the Dallas Mavericks according to Adrian Wojnarowksi. That puts the pressure on the Celtics to move up in the draft.
The Boston Herald reported that Isaiah Thomas was working on recruiting Aldridge to Boston and the forward was even spotted at the local airport. However, reports are now surfacing that he would prefer to return to his home state of Texas over anything else. Thomas should not have an issue recruiting other players as Boston is building a team ready to contend. With Marcus Smart and Thomas inserted as the point guards, the team just needs one or two stars to push the Celtics back to the top.
There are other free agent options available should Boston still need defenders. Marc Gasol, Greg Monroe and Brook Lopez could be three players they could easily afford and place under the basket for help. Any of those three options will not come cheap so Boston should be prepared to spend money.
