Cooper Flagg reportedly had an interview with the Boston Celtics last week during the NBA draft combine, and all sorts of speculation has ensued.
Seeing Cooper Flagg in a Celtics jersey would be a dream come true for Boston fans across Maine. Some of them already said as much after the Newport native had a sensational freshman season at Duke University.
There can be a big difference between dreams and reality, however.
The current reality is that the Dallas Mavericks own the first overall pick, and after having some of the worst odds ever for a team that went on to win the NBA draft lottery, seem pretty happy to keep their golden ticket to drafting a generational talent in Flagg. Sources have told ESPN that the Mavericks see their lottery fortunes as a “gift” and plan to draft him.
Yes, plans can change. And yes, there is an air of unpredictability that accompanies the NBA draft. But Celtics fans shouldn’t get ahead of themselves as speculation swirls around Flagg’s reported interview with the Boston team during the NBA draft combine last week.
“I have multiple sources telling me the Celtics interviewed Cooper Flagg,” Yahoo Sports NBA Insider Kevin O’Connor said recently on his podcast, adding that Boston also interviewed top prospect Tre Johnson from the University of Texas.
“Now, this does not mean they are going to trade up into the top 10,” O’Connor immediately cautioned. “But I do think it’s interesting.”
Interesting, yes. Fodder for debate online and on the airways after the Celtics were knocked out of the playoffs, certainly. But realistic? Not likely.
The Mavs seem thrilled, as they should be, at their luck during the draft lottery last week. Flagg sees “a lot of really good pieces in Dallas” and is working to become the best player that he can be in the NBA. And the Celtics front office was already downplaying the possibility of draft night drama to start this week.
“As far as us and moving up to those levels in the draft, I would guess that that is probably not on the table,” Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens said at an end of season press conference on Monday.
It almost would have been organizational malpractice for the Celtics not to interview Flagg, regardless of whether they have a chance to draft him now or would have to wait to see what happens further down the road in his career after a rookie contract.
Stevens steered people away from reading too much into who the Celtics interviewed during the combine, noting those interviews can sometimes be the only chance for the team to talk to a prospect whose draft projection falls outside of the team’s pick range.
“The people we know we can’t get in to work out is how we decide who to talk to at the combine,” he said Monday. “Otherwise we may never get to talk to them again.”