2017 NBA Draft: Celtics, Sixers could swap picks, per new report
The Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers could swap picks during next month's NBA Draft. The Celtics are reportedly interested in Kansas wing Josh Jackson, who is projected to go No. 3 overall in most mock drafts.
If the trade were to go down, the Sixers could select Lonzo Ball or Markelle Fultz with the No. 1 overall pick (via Celtics) while sending either Jahlil Okafor or Dario Saric and the No. 3 pick to Boston. It's important to note that there's also chatter of Boston trading their No. 1 overall pick for a veteran all-star. Therefore, the Celtics-Sixers swap is mere speculation at this stage. The 2017 NBA Draft is on June 22.
NBA insider Bill Simmons, who has close ties to the Celtics organisation, reckons that the potential trade would make a ton of sense for both Boston and Philadelphia. "Philly is the team I keep looking at. So Philly's three. Philly moves up to one and they get Fultz or Lonzo (Ball). Probably Fultz. You put Fultz with Ben Simmons and Embiid and that's it. If you keep Embiid and Simmons healthy, those are your three guys for the next 10 years."
2017 NBA Draft: Josh Jackson to Boston Celtics?
Simmons speculated in Ep. 215 of the Bill Simmons Podcast, "So if they love Fultz, and I don't know if they do, would you offer the number three pick, (Dario) Saric, who you don't need because you have Ben Simmons coming, and the Lakers pick next year to move up two spots? That Lakers pick might not be a great pick, because they're going to try to get better this summer. Is that too much for that pick?"
A few days after Lonzo Ball refused to work out for the Boston Celtics, ESPN reported that the UCLA standout has shown preliminary interest in playing for the Philadelphia 76ers. Of course, the Sixers could struggle to pair Ball and Simmons together since the latter is expected to play Point Guard in his rookie season. "League sources said the concern regarding the Ball-Sixers link is the organization's plan to feature forward Ben Simmons, the No. 1 pick in the 2016 draft, in a ball-dominant, point-forward role next season," NBA insider Chris Haynes wrote in his report published recently.
Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Lakers could still wind up with Lonzo Ball if the Sixers were to select Markelle Fultz with the No. 1 overall pick (provided they trade up in the draft). The Lakers are reportedly mulling the possibility of drafting Kentucky's De'Aaron Fox, who outplayed Ball and led his team to the Elite Eight of the NCAA tourney.
