The Boston Celtics enter this June's NBA Draft with picks No. 27 and No. 40. While it's unclear if the Celtics will actually make those picks, there are some skeptics out there about their ability to successfully find impact players if they do use them.

Bobby Manning of CLNS Celtics pointed out that the Celtics haven't made an impactful draft selection since taking Payton Pritchard out of Oregon in 2020.

While that might technically be true, it goes a little deeper than that, so let's take a bit of an extended look at what goes into this conversation for Boston:

2025: Hugo Gonzalez and Noah Penda (traded to Orlando)

2024: Baylor Scheireman and Anton Watson

2023: Julian Phillips (traded to Washington then Chicago)

2022: JD Davison

2021: Juhann Bagarin 

2020: Aaron Nesmith, Payton Pritchard, Desmond Bane (traded to Memphis), Yam Madar

BOLD = on active roster

On the surface, Manning's point is correct. Only three draft picks from the last six years are actually still in the organization. But...

First and foremost: The NBA Draft is not the NFL. While talented players can come from any draft slot and from the undrafted ranks, it's far more rare in basketball. We hear all the time in the NFL about fifth-to-seventh round picks making an impact. The NBA's true impact players are more concentrated in the lottery, and if you aren't picking in the lottery, it's exponentially harder to find "impact."

For instance, the Celtics took Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum in consecutive drafts. Both players have hit. It's a much easier hit rate when selecting at No. 3, where both those players were taken.

The Celtics have also been extremely good over the last decade, meaning not only are they constantly picking outside the lottery, they are picking way outside the lottery. They've also been aggressive in trades and haven't even had a first-round selection in three of those six years. One of those years (2023), they immediately traded the one player (Phillips) they did take.

Gonzalez was pick No. 28 in 2025 while Penda was taken No. 32 and immediately traded to the Orlando Magic. In 2024, Scheireman was taken No. 30 and Watson was taken No. 54.

Furthermore, there probably needs to be some more time given to Gonzalez and Scheireman before anyone makes judgements on them. Gonzalez played in 74 games this past season, averaging four points a game and serving as a valuable piece when Jayson Tatum was out with injury. That might not be impact in the way fans think of it, but a solid role player is a good niche for a rookie. Scheireman averaged 5.5 points in 77 games, also providing solid minutes.

Boston didn't have a first-round pick in 2021-23, and while Nesmith never excelled with the Celtics, he has had a nice run with the Indiana Pacers, showing that he's a good player.

Brad Stevens became the guy making the draft picks in 2021 rather than Danny Ainge. So, while it's too early to judge some of the selections, it is fair to start to point out simply that there's a different guy in charge. Stevens will earn his own reputation over time.

The NBA Draft takes place June 23-24.

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