Why don’t the Boston Celtics have a 1st-round pick in the 2023 NBA Draft?

While the rest of the league is preparing for the first round of the NBA Draft, the Boston Celtics can focus on the second round and free agency.

With one of the best rosters in the Eastern Conference, the Celtics are planning on a deep playoff run pushing off their offseason planning as late as possible. But when their season eventually ends and they begin tinker on the roster, they’ll likely have their focus on free agency as much as the draft.

Because of a recent trade, the Boston Celtics do not currently have a first-round pick. In addition to trading the rights to this pick, the Celtics will send their 2028 first-round pick to the San Antonio Spurs as part of the Derrick White trade.

Why don’t the Boston Celtics have a first-round pick in the 2023 NBA Draft?

The Boston Celtics traded their 2023 first-round pick to the Indiana Pacers, along with Malik Fitts, Juwan Morgan, Aaron Nesmith, Nik Stauskas and Daniel Theis in the offseason deal that brought in Malcolm Brogdon. That pick is currently slotted as the No. 29 pick in the first round and, depending on the Mock Draft, could land the Pacers players like Duke center Dereck Lively II,  UCLA wing Jamie Jaquez Jr. or Houston guard Marcus Sasser.

Brogdon has been a key piece for the Celtics and one of the best sixth men in the league this season, averaging 14.5 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game.

The Celtics do have a fairly valuable second-round pick — No. 36 courtesy of the Portland Trail Blazers, arriving in their hands over the course of five trades stretching back to 2019. NBA-ready prospects like Jalen Wilson of Kansas, Julian Strawther of Gonzaga and Coleman Hawkins of Illinois could all be available to them at that range.

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