Prior to the 2017 NBA Draft, the Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers traded draft picks. In the end, the 76ers selected Markelle Fultz with the first overall pick as the Celtics selected Jayson Tatum with the third overall pick.
Before the Celtics selected Tatum, they were strongly considering Josh Jackson. However, Jackson's agent canceled the workout as the Celtics were flying to Sacramento, CA to watch him. Leading up to his first matchup in Boston, Jackson explained the miscommunication according to Jared Weiss of Celtics Wire:
“It was just miscommunication between me and my agent – couldn’t set up a workout,” Jackson said Saturday before the Suns faced the Celtics. “The day they were supposed to come in, I wasn’t aware and wasn’t prepared. So I’m not going to work out if I’m not prepared.”
When asked about the idea of having to fight for minutes if the Celtics selected him, Jackson had the following to say:
“I’m not threatened by anybody, ever. I welcome competition.”
In the end, this miscommunication may have worked out for both sides. For the Celtics, Tatum has established himself as one of the league's best rookies in Gordon Hayward's absence, averaging 13.7 points and 5.3 rebounds in 30.5 minutes. As for Jackson, he is averaging 9.3 points and 3.8 rebounds in 21.5 minutes as his playing time should increase as the 2017-18 NBA season progresses.
While there is always the ‘what if' situation with Jackson, the Celtics and Suns will ultimately not know if they made the right decisions until their third or fourth year of their respective careers.
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