The Boston Celtics traded down from the first overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft to the third pick and that made it look like they were in the perfect position to draft Josh Jackson of the Kansas Jayhawks. However, Boston passed on Jackson and instead drafted Jayson Tatum. In an interview after the NBA Draft, Celtics president Danny Ainge made comments that made it sound like Boston didn't draft Jackson because he canceled his workout with the team at the last minute.
Danny Ainge expresses his anger
Danny Ainge was asked after the NBA Draft why they chose not to draft Josh Jackson and he was very blunt.
Ainge said that they never talked to Josh. He said that no one in the entire Boston Celtics organization talked to Josh. He said that they had a workout planned to watch him and talk to him and they flew out to Sacramento, California for that workout.
When Danny Ainge, Brad Stevens, and other personnel arrived at the workout following the cross country flight, Jackson canceled on them. Ainge said that he made the decision that Josh Jackson didn't want to play for the Boston Celtics. Ainge said that he was mad because he had to get up at 4 a.m. and fly back home.
When asked about it, Josh Jackson said that the Boston Celtics made it pretty clear that they were going to draft Markelle Fultz with the top pick so he felt it would be a waste of his time to work out for them.
When the Celtics traded down, Jackson said it was too late to set up a new workout and it cost Josh one draft spot.
The fallout from the draft slip
Josh Jackson is the better all-around player when comparing him to Jayson Tatum. While Tatum is a special offensive player, he might need time to develop his defensive skills since Brad Stevens is a defensive-minded coach.
However, at the same time, Tatum is also a good fit in terms of what the Boston Celtics need.
Immediately following the NBA Draft, Josh Jackson said that his refusal to workout for the Boston Celtics might have caused his drop to the fourth spot. However, CBSSports reported that Jackson also said later that all the teams who passed on him will "be sorry" one day.
Instead of going to play for the defending Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics, Josh Jackson will play for the Phoenix Suns. The Suns finished dead last in the Western Conference with a 24-58 record, even worse than the Los Angeles Lakers, who picked two spots ahead of them and chose Lonzo Ball. Jackson also lost out on $686,000 by dropping one spot in the draft.
