With the No. 30 pick in the 2024 NBA draft, Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Wasserman projects the Boston Celtics to select Dayton’s DaRon Holmes II, a Trayce Jackson-Davis-type prospect whose standout offensive attributes come with some defensive shortcomings.
“DaRon Holmes II enters this predraft process with more momentum than he had last year,” Wasserman prefaced before saying, “Improved range, handles/body control attacking the basket and passing have raised his draft stock, and he’s coming off a 23-point, 11-rebound, three-assist, four-stock game with a pair of threes against Arizona in the NCAA tournament.
“There still seems to be some reluctance from scouts who question his defensive fit and how translatable his shot and face-up game are. But the believers out there do sound high on Holmes, and it’s sounding possible that one of them could use a first-round pick to get him.”
Boston Celtics could find better fits with first-round selection
When you have a draft choice at the end of the first round, you’re most likely looking for the best fit over the best talent available. The latter strategy is typically reserved for rebuilding teams in need of a nearly clean slate, not a contending team like the Cs that may be coming off an NBA Championship run by the time the draft rolls around in late June.
With that in mind, Holmes’ fit with the Celtics isn’t ideal considering the question marks surrounding his defense. Boston could conceivably bring back both Luke Kornet, a classic rim protector who lacks the sort of grit a starting caliber center needs but who can swat shots away with his seven-foot-plus frame, and Xavier Tillman, a shorter big man who doesn’t have the verticality to be a shot-blocker but makes up for it in the physicality department. If they don’t, though, they’ll need to find someone who prioritizes the less glamorous side of the floor.
Holmes isn’t that. While having a gifted scorer would be nice, it isn’t all that necessary considering how many points the starting five, plus Payton Pritchard and Sam Hauser, generates.
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