In the weeks heading into the 2017 NBA Draft, the Boston Celtics had the luxury of selecting the number one overall pick.
It allowed for them to be in complete control of what direction they wanted to head with the top pick, and it saw them use that advantage to make a trade with the Philadelphia 76ers to move down and still acquire one of the top talents in the draft in former Duke forward Jayson Tatum.
During a recent interview with WTF IN The Attic Podcast, Tatum revealed that the plan all along for the Celtics was to select him with the pick even if it was the top overall pick.
https://youtu.be/jAeH3KLOeHc?t=12m
“The Celtics were going to always pick me No.1, but Philly didn't know that. They thought that Boston was going to pick Markelle, so Philly traded the pick and gave Boston a pick for next year. So Boston was like, we can still get the player we want along with next year's pick. We also get the player we want for less money. Boston still got all that they wanted and Philly had to give up all that to get Markelle. Philly didn't know Boston was going to get me.”
The Celtics played their draft choice close to the vest throughout the entire process while making it seem publicly like they were very interested in selecting former Washington point guard Markelle Fultz with their top choice. The team brought him in for multiple workouts and stayed the course with that perception.
Although Fultz appears to be quite a talented player, Tatum also had a strong showing in the Las Vegas Summer League in his brief experience, averaging 17.7 points in three games played. The aspect that stood out the most was his tremendous level of confidence in his ability to create his own shot.
Getting their man at the third spot and snagging a pick from the Sixers has the potential to be a huge win-win situation for Boston.
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