History Of No. 35 Pick In NBA Draft Shows Celtics Could Get Steal

By the time the Boston Celtics get on the clock in the 2023 NBA Draft, all the high-prized prospects will be long gone.

The Celtics enter Thursday’s marquee offseason event without a first-round pick for the third consecutive year. Boston’s first pick doesn’t come until early in the second round at No. 35 overall, which actually is an upgrade over last season when its only selection came at No. 53 and it waited until No. 45 to draft in 2021.

But fret not Celtics fans, the history of the No. 35 pick shows Boston could be primed to get a steal.

One of the most notable players taken with that selection is four-time NBA champion and Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green. Green’s bulldog mentality mixed with his defensive versatility and playmaking skills were a vital asset to the Warriors’ dynastic run. Targeting a player that is cut from the same cloth as Green wouldn’t be a terrible idea for the Celtics.

Drafting Green in the second round was a home-run pick, and there’s certainly no guarantee the Celtics could get a player close to his caliber given the variables that play a part in any draft. But the good news is that Green isn’t the only example of a player panning out at No. 35 overall.

There’s actually a decent list of players who have go on to have solid NBA careers, including DeAndre Jordan, Carlos Boozer, P.J. Tucker, Glen Davis, Nemanja Bjelica and Willy Hernangomez. Even Herbert Jones, who the Pelicans used the No. 35 pick on in 2021, is a defensive menace for New Orleans and has started 135 games in two seasons.

Getting a player like Green, Jordan or Boozer, who all made an All-Star Game at least once, would be the dream scenario for the Celtics. But even getting someone like Davis, who had his ups and downs in his career, would still serve the Celtics well. Davis turned into a serviceable player — he averaged 11.7 points per game in his final season with the Celtics — and he not only won an NBA title with Boston but also had some memorable moments in the playoffs.

But for every Green or Jordan or Boozer, there are players taken at No. 35 that don’t come close to making an impact. Ivan Rabb and Jarnell Stokes are just whispers in the wind, only making it a few years in the league before washing out. While Davis worked out for the Celtics, Rade Zagorac did not. The Celtics selected Zagorac at No. 35 in 2016 and he never appeared in a game for the franchise.

So, just as much as the Celtics could get a steal of a pick Thursday night, it could certainly go the other way, too. They need just a little Red Auerbach luck to make sure things go the way they want when their pick comes up.

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