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Robb: Terry Rozier, R.J. Hunter Earn High Marks In NBA Rookie Survey

BOSTON (CBS) -- Over the course of Danny Ainge's 12 draft nights with the Boston Celtics, 2015 might have been the one that has been the most panned by critics in the direct aftermath.

Armed with four draft picks, including three in the top 33 picks of the draft, Ainge failed to trade up this past June, and instead added three guards to an already crowded backcourt.

To further complicate matters, the Terry Rozier pick was seen by some, such as Howard Beck of Bleacher Report as the biggest reach of the draft. Others, such as Matt Moore of CBSSports.com gave Boston a failing grade for the selection.

Of course, all of these armchair reactions don't exactly mean anything until we see the players on the floor. However, the Celtics got a bit of encouraging news about the potential of their first-round prospects on Wednesday via NBA.com's Annual Rookie Survey.

The poll quizzes a pool of 36 rookies on a variety of topics about their classmates, asking questions such as, who is the best rookie, best defender and most athletic. You can't vote for current or former teammates, making the survey an unbiased sampling of each player's opinion of their adversaries.

Hunter and Rozier did not win any categories outright in the survey, but both were among the top vote getters in categories that should make Celtics fans optimistic about their chances of contributing in green.

Hunter took down second place honors in the "biggest steal" category after being taken with the No. 28 overall pick. He received 9.1 percent of the votes in the category, a number that tied him with Tyus Jones, Bobby Portis and Boston draft night target Justise Winslow.

The biggest surprise of the survey though may have been the fact that Rozier finished just behind Hunter in the "biggest steal" question, taking down 6.1 percent of the vote. That put Rozier ahead of names like Emmanuel Mudiay, Devin Booker, Stanley Johnson and highly touted teammate Jordan Mickey.

Rozier's solid play in summer league has already quieted some of the talking heads that were understandably skeptical of the hybrid guard that was projected to be taken late in the first round. Still, the 21-year-old must be highly regarded by those who faced him at Louisville last year for them to anoint him as a potential steal, see as he was selected as high as No. 16. The 6-foot-3 guard also earned votes for "most athletic" and "best playmaker," two areas the Celtics need help in following last year's campaign.

The second place honor for Hunter wasn't his only one of the survey. The former Georgia State star tied local product Pat Connaughton for second place in the "best shooter" category, earning 8.8 percent of the overall vote. Both players were a distant second to Suns rookie Devin Booker, but Hunter still beat out sharpshooter and No. 5 overall pick Mario Henzoja for second place.

Ultimately, no one knows yet just how well the games of Hunter and Rozier will translate to the NBA. However, if this year's pool of rookies are on the mark with their assessments of both players, Ainge may be able to look back fondly on a draft night in 2015 that others have already deemed a bust.

Brian Robb covers the Celtics for CBS Boston and contributes to NBA.com, among other media outlets. You can follow him on Twitter @CelticsHub.

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