The Boston Celtics have been at the center of plenty NBA Draft 2017 trade rumors, with their No. 1 draft pick and the chance to take Markelle Fultz driving the speculation. It's now looking more likely that the Celtics will make a deal with Philadelphia so that Philly can land Fultz with the top pick. Meanwhile, Boston seems to have their watchlist of who they want on the roster narrowed down, and could snag that pick at the No. 3 spot. Here's the latest on the NBA draft rumors and Celtics-Sixers trade talk, including a tweet posted by one of the Sixers' stars that excited Philly fans.
Fultz visiting Philly
On Saturday, The Vertical's Adrian Wojnarowski tweeted that Fultz would be making a visit to Philadelphia and that the deal between the Celtics and Sixers is probably being put together. That means Sixers fans may have plenty to celebrate, as they could put Fultz into a starting lineup along with future stars Ben Simmons, Dario Saric, and Joel Embiid. In particular, Embiid posted an interesting tweet on Saturday regarding Fultz's visit and potential of landing with the team.
👀 (via @JoelEmbiid) pic.twitter.com/YKI9VoDGK1
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) June 17, 2017
The speculative deal that it appears the Boston Celtics and Philadelphia Sixers are working out would involve trading this year's picks, with Philly also giving Boston a future draft pick.
That would allow Boston to have the No. 3 pick and possibly Philly's pick in next year's draft. That unprotected 2018 draft pick was acquired from the Los Angeles Lakers, another team that was mentioned with Boston in NBA draft trade rumors this past week.
While Fultz's college team failed to qualify for the NCAA Tournament, the 19-year-old was the team's clear leader.
He averaged 23.3 points, 5.9 assists, and 5.7 rebounds a game while hitting 41.3 percent of his three-point shots. The Sixers could clearly use a player at the position, and the possibilities of a backcourt with him and Ben Simmons, along with big man Joel Embiid is certainly a reason for excitement in Philly.
Celtics want Jackson?
There have been rumors and reports that the Boston Celtics really want to land Josh Jackson from the Kansas Jayhawks. It's believed that many analysts feel Jackson has the most upside of the top three players in the NBA Draft. The trade would also mean the Celtics can draft a swingman instead of another point guard since the team already has Isaiah Thomas filling that role.
While many fans want Boston to trade their No. 1 pick, it's also believed this team is looking toward the future. The expectation is that eventually, LeBron James will slow down and other teams in the Eastern Conference will have a shot at overtaking Cleveland. So at this point, it looks like Boston is planning for several seasons down the road, rather than trying to win right away.
Of course, there could be even bigger trade rumors coming to life if Boston is going to draft a particular player to make a deal with the Chicago Bulls for Jimmy Butler. Stay tuned, as this upcoming 2017 NBA Draft continues to get more intriguing by the day.