BOSTON — The Celtics made their second and final 2024 NBA Draft selection Thursday evening, which left the organization with a fresh pair of prospects the team is confident can make a difference in the future.
Guard Baylor Scheierman (Creighton) was Boston’s first-round selection at No. 30 overall while forward Anton Watson (Gonzaga) was the team’s second-round pick at No. 54 overall. Although waiting to pick last and almost last in both rounds hasn’t historically worked out for teams scrapping for undervalued talent, Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens carefully considered who the organization would take a flyer on.
“Those guys both are winning players,” Stevens said Thursday following the conclusion of the draft. “They’ve played in a lot of big moments and a lot of big games and big environments. They know how to play on both ends of the floor, they’ve been really well coached.”
Scheierman, 23, spent five seasons in college, developing as one of the most elite sharpshooting threats in the 2024 class. He averaged 18.5 points while shooting 38.1% from 3-point range for the Bluejays, which poses plenty of potential for Boston’s offense which prides itself in long-range scoring — the Celtics led the NBA in 3-point attempts (42.5) and makes (16.5) during the regular season and in the postseason.
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Obviously, there’s no guarantee that either Scheierman or Watson will pan out and become serviceable NBA-ready players, but having prospects with the right intangibles was the plan from the get-go. Even coming off the franchise’s record-setting 18th title, Stevens and the Celtics didn’t plan to write off the draft and rely on the roster as is without considering the future.
“If you can find players that you think are really tough, really smart, about the right things, know the game then you try to gobble them up,” Stevens explained. “And make them a part of your program and hopefully those guys can come in and accentuate our best players like we ask everybody else to.”
Watson, 23, also spent five seasons in college before taking the NBA leap. The Gonzaga product primarily fulfilled the team’s defensive voids while averaging 14.5 points, 7.1 rebounds and 2.6 assists for the Bulldogs. He was a first-team selection in the West Coast Conference this past season, nearly broke John Stockton’s Gonzaga steals record (262) by finishing second all-time (215), and is extremely versatile on the defensive side of the floor with a 6-foot-8 frame and 7-foot wingspan.
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Being that there isn’t much room for offensive improvement pending team ownership fulfills its mission of keeping the championship-winning roster fully intact for next season, adding a defensive-first prospect is wise.
Stevens made it clear that everything was taken into account before the Celtics submitted their picks and welcomed aboard a few newcomers chasing their lifelong dreams of making it to the NBA.
“You have to be a person that raises the energy level in the room,” Stevens said when addressing the character component of evaluating Scheierman and Watson. “We can’t be dragging each other down. There’s enough going on. The opponents are hard enough so that’s a huge part of our whole process and these two guys are winners. We believe that and they like basketball and they’re smart and they’re tough and when they come here they’ve gotta continue to raise their level because our guys are too.”
Featured image via Steven Branscombe/USA TODAY Sports Images
