Danny Ainge left the Celtics following 18 years to become CEO of the Utah Jazz. However, that doesn’t mean Ainge is ending his influence in Boston. To this day, the status of the Celtics may still be what he expected.
“It’s been fun,” Ainge told Sports Illustrated in a phone interview. “You invest a lot of time with all the players and it’s fun to see them get opportunities and fulfill their potential. It’s a fun experience. I’m watching them bloom.”
Boston is in its first Finals since 2010, and they’re here because of Jayson Tatum’s scoring, Marcus Smart’s defense, Jaylen Brown’s cut, Ime Udoka’s scheduling, and Brad Stevens’ general manager.
But they’re also on the stage because of Ainge, who picked six of the Celtics’ eight-man rotation when healthy. He engineered the trade with Brooklyn for the draft picks that drafted Tatum and Brown.
On draft night in 2016, he was verbally abused by a group of Boston fans who demanded to draft Kris Dunn for picking Brown. The next year, in 2017, he dropped Markelle Fultz and chose Tatum because of the decentralization of the first pick. Taking advantage of the down trade, he successfully acquired Robert Williams, Grant Williams and Payton Pritchard in that year’s draft.
He’s had turnovers before, but his draft pick is a big reason Boston is still on the court.
In the case of Tatum, it’s easy to forget how risky the decision to trade down in ’17 was. Fultz is the acknowledged No. 1 pick, a tall, polished point guard. Ainge opted to trade draft picks with Philadelphia, still acquiring an additional first-round pick in the process to bring Tatum under his wing. Tatum showed scoring potential in his first season, making his third All-Star team and entering the MVP conversation this year.
“I don’t think all great players start out good. You know they have potential, but you’re never sure how high their ceilings are. There’s a lot of mental toughness, work ethic and choices that they make as they progress through their careers. factor. Jayson has a lot of special characteristics and it’s been interesting to watch him grow into such a great player,” Ainge said.
When Boston handed over the starting point guard job to Smart last fall, skepticism was always with him. Smart has played a combo guard role over the years, either as a backup or alongside Isaiah Thomas, Kyrie Irving and Kemba Walker. However, Ainge said he believes Smart has the ability to be a point guard, mainly because that’s the role the Celtics envisioned when they drafted him.
“We picked Marcus as the point guard,” Ainge said. “His strength is his versatility. Because we have Isaiah Thomas, Kyrie Irving and Kemba Walker, he has the opportunity to play with some All-Star point guards, and his The talent allows him to play one, two, three. I’ve always felt that his biggest strength is as a point guard because he can use his size to his advantage. He’s a very unique player. He has a good vision, and he’s a great shot in the paint.”
When Boston took Grant Williams in 2019, not many expected him. But Williams’ physicality has made him a key figure in the Celtics’ top defense. Williams shot 32.6 percent from 3-point range at Tennessee in college. This season, Williams is shooting 41.1 percent from the field.
“I like Grant’s shooting skills, another strength is his toughness. I really believe he can be a guy who can shoot from the perimeter and defend a lot of different positions and really add variety to the defense. He’s played for that most of his life. When we saw free throws in draft practice, I did have hope. He has a chance to develop into a 3-point shooter. I don’t think he’s going to be the top 3-point shooter, but he’s going to be a solid points.”
Ainge’s thoughts directly impacted Boston’s roster, but so did his absence. Ainge’s departure allowed Stevens to be subsequently promoted to his old job, while opening the door for Boston to hire Udoka.
“Ime is a stubborn guy, he’s extremely respectful. I think he has a toughness that players like,” Ainge said. And Stevens, in his new role, executed the pivotal deal that added Al Horford and Derrick White to the mix.
“I think Brad did a really good job, especially at the trade deadline. It always happens when you think it’s going your way, and even though the team is doing really well, he still has to pull the trigger and get Derrick. Derrick White played really well the rest of the game. I think it made it easier for Ime. The backup point guard was a bit stuck, and this trade fixes that and I think it’s good for the team.”