Celtics Rumors: Latest Updates on Willie Cauley-Stein and NBA Draft Trade Buzz

Don't call it a rebuild.  

The Boston Celtics are totally unrecognizable from the championship outfit of the late aughts, with general manager Danny Ainge having stripped down his roster in the post-Big Three and Rajon Rondo era.  And yet, having snagged the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference after a 21-12 finish to the regular season, Brad Stevens has accelerated expectations in Boston and established a culture of tenacity and responsibility.

Of course, that alone won't suffice to help return the C's to legitimate title contender status.  Boston's roster is a morass of overachieving misfit parts, and for a franchise that only hangs championship banners, future first-round sweeps won't impress any longer.

The consequence of the Celtics' unexpected postseason run is that Boston now has two non-lottery selections, picks 16 and 28 (via the Los Angeles Clippers as compensation for Doc Rivers).  It's certainly not impossible to strike gold from those spots, but as CSNNE's A. Sherrod Blakely reports, the Celtics have their eyes set on moving up and snagging a coveted Kentucky center:

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Two league sources told CSNNE.com Friday that the Boston Celtics are “very open” to moving up in next month’s NBA draft.

And while the sources did not indicate which player Boston was targeting, there are growing signs that they have their sights set on trying to draft Kentucky big man Willie Cauley-Stein.

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Willie Cauley-Stein is nearly certain to go off the board in the top 10 picks, and the ex-Wildcat could even soar into the top five depending on what teams think about the likes of Kristaps Porzingis, Justise Winslow and Mario Hezonja.  After presumptive top-two picks Karl-Anthony Towns and Jahlil Okafor, Cauley-Stein arguably offers the most enticing combination of size, athleticism and defensive potential.

The latter element should particularly appeal to the Celtics, who were among the worst rim-protection teams in the league last season.  According to NBA.com, C's opponents shot 53.9 percent at the rim, the third-worst defensive mark in the league.  Moreover, Boston grabbed only 32 percent of contested rebounds, the fifth-worst mark during the regular season.

It's no surprise that the Celtics have already interviewed Cauley-Stein, according to the Boston Globe's Adam Himmelsbach.  We don't have enough of a sample size to see what kind of player developer Stevens is, but considering that his squads at Butler and Boston have both been overachievers, it's not hard to envision him taking Cauley-Stein's raw athleticism and molding him into a dominant big man.  

Indeed, Himmelsbach relayed Cauley-Stein's admiration at the Celtics' rapid progress:

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Willie Cauley-Stein on Celtics: "To be that young and be where they're at is really amazing."

— Adam Himmelsbach (@AdamHimmelsbach) May 15, 2015"

Alas, the best-laid schemes of mice and NBA GMs often go awry, and realistically, it's going to be extremely difficult for Ainge to move up into the top 10.  NBA first-rounders simply aren't valued the same way as they are in, say, the NFL, and ESPN's Chad Ford suggested that Boston's flexibility should not be mistaken for the type of premium assets it'll need to make such a move:

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The issue? I'm not sure what the Celtics have that would really entice them. All want an established young player that could help them now. But at the 5-8 range, they're going to have to be really good. Marcus Smart could get them there, but I think he's untouchable. Not sure there's anyone else on the Celtics roster (even when you factor in future picks the Celtics can offer) that get them that high.

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However, trading up is probably in Ainge's best interests.  The Celtics roster is such that Ainge could probably strip things down without too much difficulty, but having established some positive progress last season, it's unclear whether he'd opt for further instability.  

But looking at Boston's infusion of future first-rounders, Ainge really has no choice but to cash in some of his chips at some point, even while considering that some of these picks are unlikely to get conveyed due to protections:

Year	Picks	Protections
2015	Celtics (No. 16), Clippers (No. 28)	None
2016	Celtics, Mavericks, Nets, Cavaliers, Timberwolves	DAL (1-7), CLE (1-10), MIN (1-12)
2017	Celtics, Grizzlies	Right to swap own pick with Nets, MEM (1-10), Grizzlies cannot convey until at least 2 years after conveying own pick to Nuggets
2018	Celtics, Nets	None

Thus, the Celtics are probably casting a wider net than just the Kentucky center.  While Boston should probably take a high-upside big man at some point—Cauley-Stein's teammate Trey Lyles could be intriguing at pick 16—the C's have also worked out other presumptive lottery picks, suggesting that a smaller move could be in the offing:

In reality, Cauley-Stein probably needs to take an unexpected drop past the top 10 for Boston to have a realistic shot at a trade-up.  Despite his offensive limitations, Cauley-Stein's potential as a defensive anchor is droolworthy, and he does possess the hard cutting and sure finishing style that could make him a threat on pick-and-rolls while he develops a workable post game.  

The Celtics have no clear path to championship contention but do possess plenty of amorphously valuable chips that give them enviable flexibility to change their fortunes every offseason.  Ainge will be an active shopper at every opportunity to acquire a game-changing player, and while Boston is likely to strike out often, it only takes one James Harden-Oklahoma City type of situation to change an organization's outlook.