Danny Ainge's Best Draft Nights
BOSTON (CBS) -- As the 2015 NBA Draft approaches, and Danny Ainge considers his moves with Boston's four picks, it's only fitting that we look back on Ainge's work on draft night.
As with anyone, Ainge has had his ups and downs. It's been a mixed bag when it comes to making his selections, and if we've learned anything, he's not afraid to pull the trigger on a draft night trade or two. Those have also worked out with mixed results.
Read: Ainge's Worst Draft Nights
Ainge made the most of his two picks last year, grabbing Marcus Smart with the sixth overall pick and James Young at 17th overall. It's still much too early to tell with either player, though Smart was impressive during his rookie campaign while Young brings plenty of upside to the table.
With the draft just a few days away, let's look back on Ainge's best moves on draft night, and how they effected the future of the franchise.
Draft Night 2007
Ainge didn't end up walking away with Kevin Garnett this draft night, but instead laid the foundation to get The Big Ticket to Boston.
The Celtics finished the 2006-07 season with the second worst record in the NBA, and were hoping to land a top two pick so they could draft either Greg Oden or Kevan Durant. But the lottery bug bit them again, hard, and the Celtics dropped to the fifth overall pick -- the lowest possible selection they could have landed.
With Plan A and Plan B out the window (and if trading for Garnett was Plan C, that also proved unsuccessful at the time), Ainge opted to trade the pick (which turned into Jeff Green) to Seattle along with Delonte West and Wally Szczerbiak for Ray Allen and a second-round pick that turned into Glen "Big Baby" Davis.
The move itself wasn't the blockbuster trade Celtics fans were hoping for, but after balking to join just Paul Pierce in Boston, the addition of Allen got the wheels rolling again on Garnett to Boston. While he traded away the fifth pick, Ainge still had his best asset -- Al Jefferson -- to offer up, and just a few weeks later Garnett was being introduced by the Celtics alongside Allen and Pierce.
Without trading for Allen, the Celtics wouldn't have gotten Garnett, and there would be no 2008 banner hanging in the Garden. Sometimes it's funny how things work out.
Draft Night 2013
This is not near the top of this list because the Celtics traded up for Kelly Olynyk (we'll have a whole other list for that one tomorrow). No, this is here because Ainge sent two of his aging stars for multiple future draft picks, giving him the current bounty of trade chips he's always coveted.
Yes, it pains me to put the trade that sent Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett packing so high on the list, because who didn't fall in love with the KG-Pierce led Celtics? But the move had to be done in order to start the rebuild, and it's a deal that will keep on giving from a Boston standpoint over the next few years.
Ainge received a trio of future first-round picks in the deal, which also sent Jason Terry and D.J.White to Brooklyn. It also resulted in one of the most awkward photos and press conferences in Celtics history, so we'll always have that.
Technically, the move wasn't official until early July, but Garnett agreed to waive his no-trade just prior to the draft, and with that he and Pierce (and the others) were no longer Celtics. But because Ainge hit the reset button that night, he now has James Young on the roster and an extra first-round selection in 2016. If he'd like, he can swap first-round picks with the Nets in 2017 as well, which looks very promising as Brooklyn will likely be contenders for the bottom of the Eastern Conference at that point.
But while the move looks great on paper in the present, Ainge will have to hit on those draft picks (or whatever trade he includes them in) in order to ensure a successful future for the Celtics.
Draft Night 2006
Ainge pulled off a trio of moves on Draft Night 2006, and though his biggest move of the night didn't work out, his second played a big role in Boston's success from 2007-2012.
With an unhappy Pierce eager for some help, Ainge traded away the seventh overall pick to Portland, landing Sebastian Telfair in return (that pick eventually turned into Randy Foye). Telfair was pretty horrible in green, and would only be in Boston for one season.
But Ainge made up for that move by trading for the rights to Rajon Rondo (21st overall) and Leon Powe (49th overall) in separate moves. Both players had pivotal roles in Boston's 2008 run to a title, and Rondo, love him or hate him, would turn into a star (not a super star) during his time in green.
As for the Telfair trade, on the surface it was a big blunder. Actually, as a whole it was a big blunder. But digging a little deeper, it played a big part in acquiring Garnett a year later. Ainge sent Raef LaFrentz and the remaining three years of his albatross of a contract to Portland, and in return got Theo Ratliff and the two years remaining on his albatross of a contract. That one less year of ridiculous money was eventually taken on by Minnesota to make the numbers in the Garnett deal work. Had it been LaFrentz, with an added year of ridiculous money, the deal would have been much more difficult for Kevin McHale to accept.
So in the end, Raef LaFrentz and Theo Ratliff played roles in getting Garnett to Boston. Well, not the players, just the ridiculous contracts they had signed.
Draft Night 2004
In Ainge's second draft night in charge of the Celtics, he did much better than his first (more on that tomorrow). Armed with three picks, with only one of them in the lottery, Ainge came away with a trio that eventually helped him do what he had to do to bring a title to Boston.
With their own pick, No. 16 overall, Ainge drafed Al Jefferson, a high school big man with a ton of offensive talent. Big Al battled injuries his first few years, but was blossoming into a very solid contributor when Ainge gave his old friend in Minnesota a call for Garnett. Jefferson wasn't the franchise player Boston needed, and has not developed into that in his three other stops in his 11 years in the league, but is a solid pick for the end of the lottery.
Thanks to trades in previous years, Ainge had back-to-back picks in the mid-20's as well. He drafted Delonte West 24th overall (the pick was acquired in the Antoine Walker trade to Dallas) and Tony Allen 25th (pick acquired from an assist by Ainge that got Rasheed Wallace to Detroit). Delonte eventually helped Ainge land Ray Allen, and T.A. was big off the bench during the 2008 run to the title, playing stellar defense along the way.
It took some time, and not all of them were members of the Celtics, but Ainge's three picks in 2004 eventually helped the Celtics get to where they wanted.
Draft Night 2010
After a surprising run to the NBA Finals that resulted in a disappointing end, the aging Celtics were in need of an injection of youth. Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen were all a year older and all three were on the wrong side of 30, so Ainge had to get someone to eventually take one of their spots.
So with the 19th overall pick, Ainge grabbed guard Avery Bradley out of Texas, a raw freshman with some offensive ability, but who was much better known for his defense. Bradley's defense was pretty much NBA-ready when he stepped on the floor for the first time, but it was clear his offense would be a work in progress.
But in just his second year in the league, he ended up taking over for an injured Ray Allen, and wouldn't let go of that spot (except when he was hit by the injury bug). Bradley has now turned into a key member of the Celtics, and is one of just two members of the team signed after next season.
Honorable Mention: Getting Kendrick Perkins in 2003 draft night trade; Ryan Gomes with 50th overall pick in 2005; Jared Sullinger with 21st overall pick in 2012
Coming tomorrow: Ainge's Worst Draft Nights
