The Boston Celtics have been working hard to find a team that will trade them an impact veteran player for the No. 3 overall pick in Thursday night’s NBA Draft, and they may ultimately strike a deal with the Philadelphia 76ers.
ESPN NBA insiders Chad Ford and Marc Stein are reporting that the Sixers are starting to get more aggressive in their efforts to acquire the No. 3 pick.
League sources tell @chadfordinsider and me: Philadelphia is ramping up its efforts to acquire tonight's No. 3 overall pick from Boston.
— Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) June 23, 2016
The Celtics have reportedly shown interest in both Jahlil Okafor and Nerlens Noel, though it seems like Philadelphia is more inclined to trade the latter. If and when the 76ers take Ben Simmons at No. 1 overall, they’ll have a surplus of big men with Simmons, Okafor, Noel and Joel Embiid if he returns healthy.
A report from earlier this week indicated that the Celtics have not had much luck shopping the No. 3 pick, though they may be aiming too high with some of the names they have targeted. Boston is also said to be considering using the No. 3 pick in an unexpected way. Our guess is the C’s are just trying to convince teams they aren’t desperate to trade it.
