Just Shoot Me Now
So what about the offensive punch from an NBA rookie? Doesn’t that count for anything? In short, the first argument on this issue is the worst argument. “Markelle Fultz will be a contributor from Day One!”
Um… no. He won’t.
The path of NBA greatness is not simply showing up. Particularly on a team on a playoff spot hunt. Either the rookie cannot earn enough playing time to develop when competing with a better than average NBA player, or the head coach is simply more comfortable with veterans in game deciding situations, or both.
Rookes Need Time
Even rookies on bad NBA teams do not arrive as a plug and play producer. Los Angeles Lakers Brandon Ingram needed nearly one full season to begin living up to expectations. And he played plenty of minutes for the Lakers.
No rookie will play much for the Celtics this year, not even Markelle Fultz. And that is why if the goal is to win-now, veterans are a better option than the NBA draft.
The draft is the worst place to obtain shooting - fail rate on draft shooters is very high. NBA pace, speed, and timing very different. https://t.co/7eXqAReDim
— Steve Kyler (@stevekylerNBA) June 11, 2017
So, the reality is that drafting Markelle Fultz, while perfectly logical to have long term significant upside for the Celtics, may actually take the team out of Championship play for the next couple of years? So why draft a top rookie when the team is in a playoff hunt? Simple. The Celtics are being greedy