12:15 a.m.: Good morning, folks. It looks like the Celtics aren’t done with their 2013 NBA draft quite yet. There are multiple reports saying that the Pacers will send their No. 53 pick, Colton Iverson, to Boston in exchange for cash.
11:45 p.m-12:20 a.m.: The second round of the NBA draft just ended, and in case you missed anything, here are picks 31-60 with the team that the players are currently going to.
No. 31: Allen Crabbe, Portland
No. 32: Alex Abrines, Oklahoma City
No. 33: Carrick Felix, Cleveland
No. 34: Isaiah Canaan, Houston
No. 35: Glen Rice Jr., Philadelphia
No. 36: Ray McCallum, Sacramento
No. 37: Tony Mitchell, Detroit
No. 38: Nate Wolters, Philadelphia
No. 39: Jeff Withey, Portland
No. 40: Grant Jerrett, Portland
No. 41: Jamaal Franklin, Memphis
No. 42: Pierre Jackson, Philadelphia
No. 43: Ricky Ledo, Dallas
No. 44: Mike Muscala, Dallas
No. 45: Marko Todorovic, Portland
No. 46: Erick Green, Denver
No. 47: Raul Neto, Atlanta
No. 48: Ryan Kelly, L.A. Lakers
No. 49: Erik Murphy, Chicago
No. 50: James Ennis, Atlanta
No. 51: Romero Osby, Orlando
No. 52: Lorenzo Brown, Minnesota
No. 53: Colton Iverson, Boston
No. 54: Arsalan Kazemi, Washington
No. 55: Joffrey Lauvergne, Memphis
No. 56: Peyton Siva, Detroit
No. 57: Alex Oriakhi, Phoenix
No. 58: Deshaun Thomas, San Antonio
No. 59: Bojan Dubljevic, Minnesota
No. 60: Janis Timma, Memphis
10:57 p.m.: While we were bugging Ainge, the NBA went ahead and finished the first round like a bunch of jerks.
The Spurs tabbed Livio Jean-Charles, following Gobert and making that two straight Frenchmen taken. Kentucky guard Archie Goodwin was grabbed by OKC, then Phoenix selected Nemanja Nedovic, a point guard from Lithuania.
While I try to make sense of what’s happened here in the draft and with trades, you’ll be in capable hands for the second round. If the second round is anything like the first, it could be crazy.
10:50 p.m.: Ainge finally did us the honor of gracing us with his presence. No, seriously, Ainge stood with reporters and answered all of our questions, other than the ones he couldn’t answer.
Among the key tidbits were that the Celtics liked Olynyk but clearly did not go into the draft targeting one player. Ainge feels Olynyk is a starting-caliber power forward — he’s not a center despite his 7-foot frame — and that he can play alongside Jared Sullinger.
At the same time, Ainge admitted Olynyk and Sullinger are not a “championship” front line. He could not speak about the rumored deal to send Pierce and Garnett to Brooklyn, but within 10 minutes of leaving the scrum, Yahoo! tweeted this:
[tweet https://twitter.com/WojYahooNBA/status/350446567091744768 align=’center’]
So one era begins as another will end. Welcome to rebuilding mode, Celtics fans.
10:29 p.m.: Dennis Lindsey said he would be aggressive in his first draft as Jazz GM — he brought in 67 players to work out in Utah — and he has lived up to it so far.
The Jazz pulled off their second trade of the first round when they dealt a second-round pick and cash to the Nuggets for the 27th pick, which they used on French big man Rudy Gobert. The 7-foot-2 center is a raw shot-blocker, but Utah has a history with raw big men.
Before Gobert was picked, the Wolves drafted Andre Roberson out of Colorado.
10:14 p.m.: If you’re wondering why there has been such a lull between updates, we were busy standing around and waiting for Ainge. The Celtics president of basketball operations was going to address reporters, we were told, but it looks like that was premature.
What happened while we were away? The Cavs took Russian forward Sergey Karasev, the Bulls took guard Tony Snell and the Jazz took center Gorgui Dieng for the Mavs. The Nets became the unfortunate team to take a flier on Duke big man Mason Plumlee and the Pacers grabbed Arizona forward Solomon Hill. The Knicks, who need a point guard of the future, tabbed Tim Hardaway Jr. at No. 24. The Clippers added the outside shooter they could use by picking UNC guard Reggie Bullock.
OK, back to standing around. Updates to come.
9:30 p.m.: We’re trying to set an all-time record for self-corrections in this live blog. (Not ashamed of that at all, by the way. It’s the nature of the draft.) The Hawks didn’t actually have three straight picks. They actually had two straight, Nos. 16 and 17, as opposed to Nos. 17 and 18.
Anyway, the Mavs were picking 18th for Dallas, which was still trying to shop the pick. Credit the Mavericks for making a mess of this first round. Even the ESPN announcers are confused.
The Hawks did not just take two straight point guards. Schroeder is most likely theirs. Shane Larkin, who just came off the board from Miami at No. 18, is going to Big D.
9:24 p.m.: “Baby Rondo,” aka Dennis Schroeder, is headed to the ATL.
Schroeder, who looks eerily like Rondo when he plays, was picked up by the Hawks at No. 17. Like Rondo, Schroeder is a great ballhandler and passer and struggles to shoot off the dribble. He also has character questions. Unlike Rondo, however, Schroeder can hit spot-up shots.
9:21 p.m.: You know what happens when you assume? Well, that saying held true here. We assumed Nogueira was picked for the Mavs, but indications are that it was actually made for the Hawks.
That’s just the way it appears now, though, meaning Atlanta essentially gets three straight picks.
9:19 p.m.: It’s still not confirmed who will get the pick, but it looks like a Dallas player. Brazil’s Lucas Nogueira would head back overseas for at least a year, most likely, freeing the Mavs from having to pay him this year and having his salary count against the cap.
9:12 p.m.: Everybody in the Celtics’ media draft room breathed a sigh of relief when the Bucks drafted Giannis Adetokunbo from Greece. The Celtics reporters were relieved Adetokunbo went to a team outside the Atlantic Division, so we may only have to write his name three times in game stories rather than four times.
It would have been really great if a Western Conference team could have taken him, but no such luck.
9:05 p.m.: With one of the picks they received in the Burke trade from Utah, the Wolves selected UCLA’s Shabazz Muhammad. There were concerns about Muhammad, since he had a disappointing UCLA career and it turned out he was actually a year older than he claimed all along.
9:00 p.m.: The Celtics helped out the Mavs, but not as much as Mark Cuban’s club would have liked. The Mavericks still have a first-round pick and the guaranteed salary that comes with it, but at least they don’t have the No. 13 pick, which was Kelly Olynyk.
Olynyk, a perimeter-oriented big man, would fit in with the Celtics’ system under Doc Rivers, which stressed long-range two-pointers, even from its big men. It remains to be seen how he fits in under the new coaching regime.
8:56 p.m.: The Celtics are on the clock.
After the Thunder took Pitt big man Steve Adams, the Mavericks traded the No. 13 pick to Boston. The Mavs don’t want the pick because they are trying to free up money to sign two big-money free agents. It appears Ainge threw Donnie Nelson a life preserver.
8:44 p.m.: Having just traded away their All-Star point guard, the Sixers snapped up their point guard of the future with the 11th pick. They drafted Michael Carter-Williams, who was shaky for Syracuse last season.
8:36 p.m.: The Blazers’ backcourt is set for the next four years if they choose to hold onto C.J. McCollum, who they just took with the 10th overall pick.
McCollum, not a true point or a true two guard, can flat-out play. He’s undersized on the wing at just 6-foot-3, but he should be able to play there. That said, he might never suit up for Portland. Many reports indicated the Blazers are already looking to trade McCollum.
Speaking of freshly drafted guards on the move, Minnesota’s Burke pick makes a lot more sense now that he will apparently be traded to the Jazz. Utah has desperately needed a point since they traded Deron Williams in 2011, and Burke makes a ton of sense there.
Minnesota reportedly will get both Utah’s picks, No. 14 and No. 21, in this first round.
8:31 p.m.: The T-Wolves have one of the best young point guards in the game in Ricky Rubio. So, of course, they drafted a point guard.
Was Jonny Flynn not available?
Trey Burke is a heck of a player, but at 6 feet tall, he can only play the point. And Rubio couldn’t shoot his way out of a wet paper bag, or however that saying goes, so he certainly can’t play the two.
The spirit of David Kahn lives on.
8:29 p.m.: More clarification needed: Now the Sixers-Pelicans trade is Holiday FOR Noel and a first-round pick in 2014. That changes things drastically. Pelicans are on the rise, but their pick will probably be back in the lottery next year.
8:24 p.m.: All right, settle down, Sixers fans. The venerable Adrian Wojnarowski has corrected himself. The Sixers are actually sending a 2014 first-rounder only to New Orleans for Noel. Holiday is staying put, for now.
Still, this isn’t a great deal for the Sixers. The 2014 draft is going to be a good one, according to most analysts, and a high pick in that draft is probably worth more than what Noel is expected to be. The Sixers must be a lot higher on Noel than everybody else.
As for the picks, Georgia’s Kentavious Caldewell-Pope went to the Pistons at No. 8. KCP should help spread the floor around Greg Monroe and Andre Drummond with his shooting ability.
8:21 p.m.: Noel is off the board, but he’s not off to New Orleans after all. The Sixers have just traded All-Star point guard Jrue Holiday and a first-round pick for Noel, according to Yahoo! Sports.
For the second year in a row, the Sixers make an awful, awful trade.
8:16 p.m.: Projected as a top-three pick in many mock drafts, Kansas’ Ben McLemore had to wait around until pick No. 7 to hear his name called by Sacramento. The 6-foot-5, 195-pound two-guard has NBA skills but character questions. That should keep things interesting for the Kings, who now have to babysit both him and DeMarcus Cousins.
8:12 p.m.: Nerlens has left the building — or at least the green room, anyway.
The New Orleans Pelicans finally did the big guy a favor and took him with the sixth pick. Clearly, the Pelicans are going with the “best available” strategy, since they already have a defensive-minded forward in last year’s first overall pick, Anthony Davis.
It’s probably not the worst philosophy, since both have injury history. Even if both only have a 50-50 chance of staying healthy in the NBA, the Pelicans just improved their odds of having a shot-blocking big man on the court.
8:08 p.m.: The Suns were expected to make a splash with the No. 5 pick. Either they could scoop up Noel or swap the pick with the Kings, who are interested in moving up.
The Suns did make a splash, but it wasn’t either of those. They selected Maryland’s Alex Len, who was a sleeper pick to go first overall. It turns out those predictions were half right — Len didn’t go first, but he did go before Noel.
8:00 p.m.: Some team is going to get a steal in Noel. We just have a feeling now. The Charlotte Bobcats just won’t be that team.
The Bobcats took the hyper-athletic and fundamentally sound Cody Zeller out of Indiana. At 7-feet, 240 pounds, Zeller has all the physical tools to be a great fast break big in the league.
7:52 p.m.: Say what you want about David Stern, but he’s having a blast with the fans at Barclays Center.
The fans in Brooklyn are booing Stern mercilessly whenever he takes the podium, and he is soaking it up. This is his last time announcing the picks as NBA commissioner, so he might as well enjoy it — boos and all.
Oh yeah, and the Wizards took Otto Porter with the third pick, something we suggested they do in our draft breakdown. The 6-foot-8, 205-pound forward out of Georgetown is a complete package who doesn’t just have a standout “plus” skill.
7:47 p.m.: Sad Face Nerlens is still on the board. The Magic, who don’t really need another frontcourt project with Nikola Vucevic, Andrew Nicholson and Tobias Harris on the roster, nabbed Indiana defensive whiz Victor Oladipo. The former Hoosiers guard improved his shooting in his last year of college, but his strengths are definitely as a slasher and on the defensive end.
7:42 p.m.: Chaos! Destruction! Confusion!
Settle down, people. The Barclays Center went wacko when the Cavs surprisingly picked UNLV’s Anthony Bennett with the top pick. Nobody had Bennett mocked as the No. 1 pick. Nobody. (No, you didn’t. Sit down and stop lying.)
Sure, it was shocking. But this is a guy being taken in a draft. Let’s not react like the rapture just occurred.
7:32 p.m.: The first pick is still to be announced, but the entire draft proceeding may be overshadowed if the Celtics and Nets pull off their blockbuster. The deal is “close,” according to several reports, and Garnett is believed to be willing to waive his no-trade clause to go to Brooklyn with his buddy Pierce.
7:25 p.m.: We’re just five minutes from the first pick, when we’ll find out if the Cavs have fallen out of love with Noel or if the flat top will soon set up residence by Lake Erie. The third possibility is that the Cavs don’t use the pick at all, and trade it.
If only you had some way to follow all the craziness that awaits tonight, plus an expert witness to explain it all to you.
Oh, wait, you do. Be sure to keep it locked here for the whole draft as we sort things out.
6:57 p.m.: Folks who know things seem to be convinced Nerlens Noel will go first, even if there has been talk of the Cavs waffling in the last few weeks. The Cavs remain curious about Maryland big man Alex Len. At 7-foot-1, 255 pounds, Len has a little more heft than the 6-foot-11, 228-pount Noel — and many, many observers feel that 228 figure is extremely liberal.
Len is a solid defender and shot-blocker, although his ceiling as a dominant defensive post player is not quite as high as Noel’s. Then again, his potential floor is nowhere near as low as Noel’s, either, so this could become a matter of the Cavs weighing a conservative pick with a greater risk-reward choice.
5:15 p.m.: The Celtics and Nets are still talking, and it sounds like the negotiations are getting serious. The talks have reached the ownership level, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports.
While the package of Gerald Wallace, Kris Humphries, draft picks and other flotsam and jetsam is a tough trade for two future Hall of Famers, the inclusion of Jason Terry would make the goal of the deal apparent: Danny Ainge wants to scrub away the last vestiges of the Rivers/Big Three era, even if it means taking on Wallace’s awful contract and Humphries’ awful everything.
5:06 p.m.: Doc Rivers isn’t the only big-name Celtic who could have a different address by the time the night is through.
You’re probably already aware of the would-be blockbuster that would send Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce to the Brooklyn Nets for a haul of bad contracts, underachieving veterans and future non-lottery draft picks. (In case we’re being too vague, we think it’s an awful deal for the Celtics.) What you may not know is that the Nets aren’t the only team talking about a potential trade with the Celtics.
The Celtics have also been on the phone with several other teams, Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe reports. No word on which teams those are, but just about everything is on the table for the Celtics. Hold tight.
10:30 a.m. ET: The day is finally here. Of the 30 teams in the NBA, 27 will try to make a pick in the NBA draft who will become a franchise cornerstone for years to come — or not.
Such game-changing athletes are believed to be hard to come by in this draft class, but that won’t keep teams from trying their best to get a halfway usable player. Nerlens Noel is expected to be the No. 1 pick by the Cleveland Cavaliers, but no one is really certain. Alex Len, Otto Porter (pictured) and Ben McLemore have all been connected with the top pick, whether the Cavs end up making the selection or trading it.
The Celtics have the 16th pick, right in the middle of the first round. It is one of the so-called “assets” the Celtics are trying to stockpile to jump-start their rebuilding process now that Doc Rivers is gone. Like most teams, the Celtics are assumed to be considering trading the pick, even though there are some intriguing options for everybody.
Join us for updates and analysis leading up to and during the draft, which starts around 7 p.m. ET.
