Danny Ainge hints that the Celtics weren’t going to take Markelle Fultz
Markelle Fultz may have felt like he belonged in Boston. But apparently the feeling wasn’t mutual, if you believe Danny Ainge.
“We think there’s a really good chance the player we’ll take at three is the same player we would have taken at one,” the Celtics president of basketball operations told reporters Monday following the team’s decision to trade away the No. 1 overall draft pick.
Danny Ainge explains the reasoning behind trading the No. 1 pick in Thursday’s Draft as he fields questions from media members: https://t.co/fvg8COFilv
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) June 19, 2017
In exchange for the top pick, the Celtics received the No. 3 pick in Thursday’s draft and a conditional future first-rounder from the Philadelphia 76ers.
Given that the 76ers are now widely expected to draft Fultz, Ainge’s comments suggest that the Celtics didn’t intend to draft the Washington point guard. ESPN reported earlier this month that Fultz was “the top guy” on Boston’s draft board, but that the team was also considering alternatives, including Lonzo Ball, De’Aaron Fox, Josh Jackson, and Jayson Tatum. It’s unclear which of those options Ainge might have been referring to.
Ainge said that the Celtics front office was “unanimously” confident in the trade. The team will receive a 2018 or 2019 draft pick from the 76ers, depending where the 2018 pick ultimately falls.
“This was a great opportunity to acquire an impactful asset,” Ainge said Monday.
