Celtics select Jaylen Brown with No. 3 overall pick in draft

After a night jammed with juicy trade rumors that ultimately became nothing for the Celtics, Ainge faced arguably the biggest question of them all: is this all the Celtics are going to do this summer?

Picking Brown at No. 3 is perfectly defensible, especially if we take the Celtics at their word that there just weren’t any reasonable trade opportunities. “I promise you, I had no idea”, Brown said when asked if he knew the Celtics would take him.

They added a pair of worldwide players with their remaining two first-round picks, taking Guerschon Yabusele at No. 16 and Croatian 6-11 center Ante Zizic at No. 23. “I think they’re gonna be very excited in the long run and that’s way more important”.

If Boston couldn’t turn three or four middling picks into one good one, stashing some and trading others was always going to be a must. “We were open for business, but we weren’t getting ripped off”. Ainge fills a crucial need by acquiring an energetic scorer, but knows that he needs to develop his outside shooting to be the player they need. What if the third pick in a draft that many consider to have only two surefire stars isn’t all that valuable?The Celtics should, if it’s feasible, package this pick along with others to get a star like Demarcus Cousins or Kevin Love.Philadelphia is not playing any games at all. It was a little surprising that Boston passed on the Michigan State product Deyonta Davis, although, I have said Zizic would be a flawless fit with Boston, so it’s anything but a poor selection.

“Look, we’re a bunch of fans who bought this team”, he said.

“I know Boston has a lot of history, a lot of tradition, and I want to add to that”, Brown said.

When Grousbeck walked out to speak to the crowd shortly after the pick was announced, he was greeted with more than a smattering of boos. His outside shot is a work in progress, but he showed great progression with the feel for his jumper as the Bears’ season moved on. While his overall game needs to develop, particularly his outside shooting, Danny Ainge believes Brown’s physical abilities and mental makeup will allow him to be a factor in Boston’s rotation nearly immediately.

Don’t get me wrong, it was a great trade, but it was no guarantee. I think it’s the same thing with Jaylen. The NY Mets were coming off a two-game sweep of the defending world series champion Kansas City Royals, but got beat last night by the worst team in the National League in a 4-3 loss to the Atlanta Braves. He has the potential to do so and to even step out onto the perimeter a little defensively. They’re trying to win basketball games, and there’s a real chance Brown won’t be much help with that.

In addition to his athleticism, Brown also comes with a high level of intellect.

“He’s a unique kid”, Ainge said after the draft.

Speaking of PBT, we knocked out 10 in-depth prospect profiles of the best college players in the draft.

But Jaylen Brown is a Celtic – at least for the time being – and the following video serves as a quick introduction to the newest member of the 17-time NBA Champions. “I’m confident that he can do that both physically and emotionally”.

However, there was another guy Doc and the Clippers really wanted to see alive on the board at 25, too: it was the Frenchman Yabusele that went high to the Celtics. Eric is also reported to be pushing for a trade through his agent.