The Celtics chosen Gonzaga ahead Anton Watson with the 54th decide within the 2024 NBA Draft. This was their second and closing choice.
The 23-year-old Watson performed 5 years of school basketball at Gonzaga, after additionally attending Gonzaga Prep. He was the Eleventh-ranked small ahead within the nation in 2019, and a consensus 4-Star recruit.
The 6’8” Watson performed 151 video games in school, beginning in each recreation he performed his closing two years. The 2023-2024 season proved to be his greatest total marketing campaign, averaging 14.5 points-per-game on simply over 41 p.c from past the arc. Nonetheless, he shot solely 30.7 p.c from three in his school profession and a poor 62.7 p.c from the free throw line.
Pre-draft, Watson was hailed as a plus defender with NBA traits. In his “shades of…” part, The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor mentioned Watson has qualities of “Previous Al Horford,” a participant the Celtics have grown to worth in recent times. Nonetheless, Watson’s burst and switchability are questionable for a contemporary NBA ahead. Whereas he had some success guarding bigger bigs comparable to Purdue’s Zach Edey, it’s unclear if that success will translate to the NBA.
In any case, it’s unlikely Watson will play a lot or in any respect within the 2024-25 NBA season, with the Celtics roster nonetheless stacked with topflight expertise coming off the franchise’s 18th Championship, one thing President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens has acknowledged brazenly.
The Celtics as soon as once more focused a tall, bodily wing with defensive traits and capturing flashes and/or upside. First Spherical decide Baylor Scheierman is an elite shooter with actual dimension that would result in defensive progress, and final 12 months’s Second Spherical decide Jordan Walsh possesses most of the identical traits and limitations as Watson: capturing flashes however a scarcity of offensive creativity or consistency paired with actual defensive talents.
The Celtics will probably have all three spend important time with the Maine Celtics to see how their three-and-D qualities develop earlier than deciding which — if any — may crack the common rotation.
