The Boston Celtics don’t know if Joel Embiid will drop to them in the 2014 NBA Draft, but it doesn’t appear as if they’re running with the assumption that he will as according to Gary Washburn, Embiid is not mentioned among the top three players the Celtics have interest in drafting.
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Earlier today, the Celtics suggested that it would be ‘quite a gamble‘ if they drafted Embiid, who is likely to see his draft stock slip after suffering a broken foot and undergoing surgery. Of course, that might be nothing more than a smokescreen as one would have to assume that teams picking in the middle of the lottery would be thrilled if Embiid, injured or not, dropped to them.
Despite that, the Boston Celtics don’t appear publically ready to commit to the idea of Embiid and seem to have the most interest in Marcus Smart, Aaron Gordon and Noah Vonleh.
With the Celtics owning the sixth selection, it’s highly questionable if Smart will still be on the board when Boston’s pick rolls around so they may miss on the Oklahoma State product by default. However, Gordon and Vonleh could very well still be on the board so it’s within reason to believe at least two of the tree will be available, if not all three.
As to who is the best fit for the Boston Celtics young roster? That’s simply a matter of opinion, though it would be a little odd to see the Celtics draft a point guard with Rajon Rondo still on the roster.