Should the Boston Celtics Trade Up to Draft Willie Cauley-Stein?
It may come as a shock to many, but thanks to a surprising 40-win season that resulted in a playoff berth, the Boston Celtics do not have a lottery pick in the 2015 draft. Instead, the Celtics will select 16th. However, that does not rule out the possibility of fireworks.
According to A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com, Boston is interested in trading up in the first round, and its primary target could be big man Willie Cauley-Stein.
Due to the wealth of draft picks general manager Danny Ainge has accumulated over the next several years, moving up is a very realistic possibility. Keep in mind that Ainge has two first-rounders at his disposal this season, the other being the No. 28 overall selection via the Los Angeles Clippers.
Cauley-Stein was interviewed by the C's at the predraft combine, and according to Blakely, the Kentucky product was loving every minute of it.
"The organization, the way they’re running, they’re on a tight ship," said Cauley-Stein, via Blakely. "They got a lot of young guys, but a lot of young talented guys. To be that young and to be where they’re at is really amazing. You can tell that begins with the coaching staff. The players have to buy into it."
So, the Celtics want Cauley-Stein, and he seems to want them.
The question is, would trading up to select the 7-footer be a good idea?
The answer: absolutely.
Clear Need
If there is one thing Boston lacks, it is rim protection. It is coming off a season where it ranked dead last in the league in blocks per game, averaging a mere 3.6.
Given that its front line consists of three offensively inclined players in Tyler Zeller, Jared Sullinger and Kelly Olynyk, this is not at all surprising.
Zeller may be a 7-footer, but he is hardly a rim-deterrent, recording only 0.7 blocks per game for his career and 1.2 blocks per 36 minutes.
Sullinger is undersized at 6'9" (which seems like a rather generous listing), and Olynyk simply does not have the wingspan to be a good shot-blocker.
The field-goal percentage each of them allowed at the rim was also dreadful (Brandon Bass is also included):
| Tyler Zeller | 51.8 | 1.2 |
| Jared Sullinger | 52.8 | 1.0 |
| Kelly Olynyk | 53.5 | 1.0 |
| Brandon Bass | 54.9 | 0.6 |
Enter Cauley-Stein, who posted 2.2 swats throughout his Wildcats tenure and averaged 3.3 per 36 minutes. Per DraftExpress.com, the center has a 7'3" wingspan. Combine that with his freakish athletic ability, and you may have a Tyson Chandler-like defensive stopper.
Unquestionable Ability
His shot-blocking prowess aside, what truly makes Cauley-Stein such a special defensive prospect is his ability to move his feet. Thanks to his quickness, he is able to stay with guards and wings on switches and does a superb job in pick-and-roll defense.
For example, let's examine a clip of a game-changing block he had against Notre Dame during the NCAA tournament:
As you can see, Cauley-Stein contains Notre Dame guard Jerian Grant on a drive, forces him into a difficult pass that deflects back to the Fighting Irish star, moves laterally to stay with him and, finally, gets a hand on Grant's shot attempt thanks to his long arms.
Now, we will look at a swat he had against Auburn:
Once again, Cauley-Stein finds himself matched up with a smaller, quicker player on the perimeter. This time, it's Auburn guard K.C. Ross-Miller.
Initially, Ross-Miller gets a step on Cauley-Stein, but the center quickly recovers, takes a couple of long strides and violently blocks the shot attempt.
This is exactly the type of defensive presence the Celtics are missing. While Sullinger and Olynyk may have good instincts on that end of the floor, neither has the foot speed to contain dribble penetration or to effectively play the pick-and-roll. The same goes for Zeller.
Of course, Cauley-Stein is not known for being much of a threat on the offensive end of the floor, but he takes umbrage with that notion.
"People saying I'm a one-sided player. I don't believe that. My team doesn't believe that. And that drives me nuts," said Cauley-Stein, via Jerry Tipton of Kentucky.com. "I'm a ballplayer. I'm not just a defensive player. I'm not out there to just play defense," he added.
While the big man will likely never develop into anything more than a lob-finisher or garbage player on that side, he absolutely has some value on offense, much like the aforementioned Chandler.
Cauley-Stein averaged 8.9 points per game during his final season at Kentucky, shooting 57.2 percent and amassing a true field-goal percentage of 58.2 percent.
So, we know he is efficient and does not try to do anything out of his element on that end of the court.
Another aspect of the former Wildcat's game is how effective he can be in the pick-and-roll. Due to his athleticism and his ability to finish around the rim, Cauley-Stein represents a great running mate with Boston guards Marcus Smart and Isaiah Thomas.
None of the big men currently on the C's are the type of players to throw down alley-oops. Cauley-Stein, however, would provide that dynamic and, in turn, would actually assist in floor spacing.
When either Smart or Thomas gets a screen from Cauley-Stein, and the center rolls to the rim, the defense will collapse to prevent an easy layup by one of the guards or a throwdown by Cauley-Stein.
This would allow good jump-shooters like Sullinger and James Young space to possibly receive a kick-out, which would result in an open shot.
Clearly, Cauley-Stein has the potential to be a difference-maker for the Celtics on both ends of the floor, something Boston has lacked in its frontcourt ever since it traded Kevin Garnett in the summer of 2013.
Plus, there is another benefit of Boston bringing Cauley-Stein aboard.
It would allow Sullinger and Olynyk to play more minutes at power forward, a position each player is much more suited for than center. Of course, whether both Sullinger and Olynyk will be Celtics at the start of the 2015-16 campaign is debatable, but either way, Cauley-Stein will give head coach Brad Stevens more flexibility with his frontcourt rotation.
Murky Availability
Of course, all of the Cauley-Stein to Boston talk is nothing more than fruitless chatter if the likelihood of it happening is slim to none.
So, is it realistic? Well, that depends on where Cauley-Stein falls.
Right now, DraftExpress.com has the 7-footer going sixth overall to the Sacramento Kings. On the other hand, NBADraft.net projects Cauley-Stein as the Indiana Pacers' pick at No. 11.
According to Candace Buckner of the Indianapolis Star, Pacers president Larry Bird holds Cauley-Stein in high esteem:
The C's certainly have a better shot of striking a deal for Cauley-Stein if he falls to Indiana. Ainge probably could put together a package to trade up to the Kings' spot, but that might end up being too costly. Or would it?
Back in April, Kevin O'Connor of CelticsBlog.com broke down a potential trade-up from Ainge and Co.:
"Danny Ainge admitted last season that he felt rim protection was a primary team weakness, so they drafted Smart and traded for Zeller, but neither of them can padlock the paint like Cauley-Stein can.
The Kentucky big man would've been in range for the Celtics to draft at 17 last year, but one year later he is locked in as a top 10 pick. Boston will have a draft pick in the 9 to 16 range, depending on if they make the playoffs or not, so they'd probably have to trade up for him.
But they have trading versatility, with four selections in the top 45 (two firsts and two seconds), a plethora of future picks, and tradable young players. It's not inconceivable for the Celtics to trade up into the 5 to 8 range of the draft to snatch the prospect they're targeting.
"
Of course, that piece was written prior to the postseason, and the Celtics ended up qualifying for the playoffs and sliding in at No. 16 as a result.
Would the No. 16 and 28 picks be enticing enough for Bird to bite? Or perhaps Bird would prefer a player instead of the No. 28 pick. Just speculating here, but maybe Olynyk?
Regardless, Boston has the goods to make something happen. It could just come down to how much it really wants Cauley-Stein.
Personally, I'd pull the trigger. Big men with Cauley-Stein's kind of ability do not come around very often, and the C's are in desperate need of a player of his ilk.
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