New reports indicate that the Boston Celtics are looking to trade their three first-round picks in the upcoming NBA draft in an effort to select University of Southern California forward Onyeka Okongwu.
Hearing same as @KevinOConnorNBA, Boston trying to package their three picks to move up, and the player the Celtics are targeting is bigman Onyeka Okongwu #nbadraft #nbadraftrumor
— NBADraft.net (@nbadraftnet) November 3, 2020
Okongwu played one season for USC, averaging 16.2 points, 8.6 rebounds, 2.7 blocks, 1.2 steals and 1.1 assists per game during the 2019-20 campaign for the Trojans.
His all-around impact would add a talented player to the Celtics’ roster from a draft that’s considered to be weaker than usual.
The Celtics currently hold the 14th, 26th and 30th picks in the draft, spots that would likely only bring in players who are in need of major development.
A native of Chino, Calif., Okongwu’s abilities on the court figure to mesh well with a Celtics team that reached the Eastern Conference Finals this season.
Exactly where Okongwu will be selected remains unknown, but other teams who are in the midst of rebuilding may be enticed by the boatload of picks offered by the Celtics.
