If the Boston Celtics’ decision to use the 16th overall pick in last week’s NBA draft on Louisville guard Terry Rozier came as a surprise to you, you weren’t alone.
The selection initially confused Marcus Smart, too.
The second-year Celtics guard, whom the defensive-minded Rozier has been compared to, told reporters Wednesday he was not expecting the C’s to use their top pick to bolster their already-crowded backcourt.
“At first I was like, ‘Wow, another guard.’ I was trying to count up how many guards we have,” Smart said following Boston’s first summer league practice, via the Boston Herald. “At first, it just kind of puzzled me a bit.”
Boston later drafted two more guards — R.J. Hunter at No. 28 and Marcus Thornton at No. 45 — in addition to forward Jordan Mickey at No. 33.
There are conflicting reports as to whether or not the Celtics included Smart in trade proposals ahead of the draft, but last year’s No. 6 pick said he was prepared for the rumors, true or not.
“I had already had a talk with (Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge) before the draft, so I already knew what was going on,” Smart said, via the Herald. “The rumors were going to come. He said don’t even worry about it, so I wasn’t worried about all of the talk.”
As draft night approached, however, Smart said someone in his camp did reach out to Ainge for a status update.
“I’m pretty sure someone associated with me called — my agent probably did — just to clarify that things were OK,” Smart said, via the Herald. “You have to do that, just to reassure that things are OK. I knew what was happening, but there were a lot of people getting in touch saying, ‘Are they really going to trade you?’ I was like, ‘Calm down, relax and just watch.’ ”
The Celtics will begin summer league play Monday against the Jazz in Salt Lake City.
See the full summer league schedule >>
Thumbnail photo via Bob DeChiara/USA TODAY Sports Images
