Best available?

I want to touch on what I think may be the biggest issue facing the Celtics with the upcoming NBA Draft: drafting by need/position versus getting the best player available.

Conventional wisdom suggests that, with the seventh pick in the draft, the Celtics should take the most talented player on the board. Boston is clearly in need of upgrades at several positions and would benefit from stockpiling talent. Teams like the Cleveland Cavaliers or the Phoenix Suns can afford to be selective with their picks because, as playoff teams, they are close to reaching the Finals and winning a championship. The Celtics are not.

While the order of the first seven picks in the draft is still very much up in the air, the names are fairly set: LaMarcus Aldridge, Andrea Bargnani, Tyrus Thomas, Adam Morrison, Brandon Roy, Rudy Gay, and Marcus Williams. Almost every mock draft has those seven guys in their top seven (the other name floated around is Randy Foye), and while nothing is certain, this group makes a lot of sense.

The player most likely to be available at No. 7 is Marcus Williams. One of the Celtics’ biggest needs is another point guard, so Williams would be a good fit. The Celtics could also use help in the frontcourt, so if Andrea Bargnani or Tyrus Thomas happens to fall to No. 7, they would fill some needs as well.

But let’s say that Rudy Gay, Brandon Roy, or Adam Morrison fall to No. 7. Do the Celtics take a small forward or a slasher when they have that spot filled for the present (Paul Pierce) and the future (Gerald Green)? Do they take the best player available (let’s say it is Rudy Gay) and trade him for a veteran big man or point guard? Do they hold onto him and let him develop behind Green and Pierce? Or do they go down a couple of spots and draft a guy like Patrick O’Bryant, a center who may not be as talented as Adam Morrison but would fit better on the Celtics?

As a Celtics fan I want the team to take the best player available because I think that gives them the best chance to get better. I’m hoping that player is Marcus Williams, who in addition to being the best point guard in the draft is also deserving of being the seventh pick based on overall talent. But if it’s not, the Celtics could definitely benefit from picking up another talented player, regardless of position.

There are no sure things in the NBA. Paul Pierce may get injured. Gerald Green may turn out to be a bust. Or both of those guys might get traded. So building a team with the most overall talent makes a lot of sense. I mean, if the Celtics happened to have three of the best small forwards in the league after two years, would that be a bad thing? If the C's drafted Rudy Gay and that situation arose in two years time, the Celtics could trade one of their three studs for an all-star at another position or play with an unorthadox lineup (can you say Phoenix Suns?). Having too many good players would be a good problem to have.

The worst thing the Celtics could do is take a guy like Rajon Rondo (if Williams is already gone) because they are set on taking a point guard. Danny Ainge has drafted very well over the last couple of years, but his free agent signings and trades have left the Celtics more than one player away from contention.

In their current situation, the Green can’t afford to sacrifice talent for position.