Well, Kevin Durant probably isn’t walking through Danny Ainge’s door this summer, not after the way he, Russell Westbrook and the rest of the Team That Should Still Be Seattle Supersonics have performed so far in the NBA playoffs.
Boston Celtics fans can still dream, but Durant can make more money staying in Oklahoma (we can argue how much money it would take to persuade anyone to live anywhere that awful, but that’s a different column), and even if Golden State pulls out this Western Conference Final against Durant’s team (I won’t type its name, they belong in Seattle, which got the shaft from Clay Bennett and David Stern), that group has proven capable of winning an NBA title.
And as promising a future as the Celtics seem to have, that’s more than Boston has to offer. Unless you want to talk sane politics, culture, and a tornado-free existence, but, again, that’s a different column.
Where does that leave the Celtics? Luck once again didn’t bless them in the draft lottery, although at least they didn’t slide out of the top three. But third in this draft is cold comfort, with only two players — Ben Simmons and Brandon Ingram — considered to be of all-star caliber.
Still, the No. 3 slot offers some intriguing options. Providence point guard Kris Dunn at six-four is considered to be an NBA-ready playmaker, but not a great shooter. And Boston needs shooting more than anything.
Oklahoma’s Buddy Hield is a six-four shooter, but is a rare four-year college player: Real all-stars don’t stay in college for four years these days, and Hield also brings some questions defensively.
Kentucky’s Jamal Murray is a six-five freshman shooting guard with a little more upside than Hield, and if the Cs keep the pick is probably their guy. He adds a little more defensive promise, long-term promise and passing ability than Hield.
Then there’s Croatian 7-footer Dragan Bender, said by some experts to have great potential. But why should Boston be interested in a guy who played 10 minutes a game and shot 33 percent for Maccabi Tel Aviv this winter and is said to be limited athletically? He’s not the next Kristaps Porzingis, the guy the Knicks got lucky with last year. Please, just say no, Danny.
Or, the Cs could trade the No. 3 pick, possibly along with Marcus Smart and one or two of their second-round picks, to a team that is rebuilding and needs depth, but maybe has one player that is better than either Smart or one of the above.
Sign me up for that plan, plus one free agent somewhere who can rebound (Al Horford?). The Celtics can hope to get a useful player — either a rebounder or shooter, depending on the trade they make with the No. 3 pick — with the No. 16 pick in the first round.
Also, the Celtics can re-sign Evan Turner, package Kelly Olynyk with a draft choice and get a better draft choice, and re-sign Jared Sullinger and fire his chef, who apparently also cooks for Red Sox third baseman Pablo Sandoval.
I would call that a good offseason, and there are more high draft picks to come in the next couple of years, courtesy of the Brooklyn Nets. Even without one of the top two picks and Durant, things look OK for the Celtics.