After shifting down the draft board Thursday night time, the Celtics made a choose aimed toward bolstering their frontcourt depth.
Boston chosen Kentucky massive man Amari Williams with the forty sixth total choose within the 2025 NBA Draft.
Williams was born and raised in England, then performed 4 seasons at Drexel earlier than transferring to Kentucky final summer time. He’s a powerful, big-bodied 7-footer with a 7-foot-6 wingspan who is taken into account an excellent passer for his dimension. Williams additionally was an efficient shot-blocker and rebounder in faculty — averaging 1.6 and seven.4 per recreation, respectively, in his profession — and was a three-time CAA Defensive Participant of the Yr earlier than his transfer to the SEC.
Scouting reviews ding him for his shaky play on the perimeter, nevertheless, each as a defender and as a shooter. Williams was a strong finisher inside however was not an out of doors capturing risk, making an attempt simply 30 complete 3-pointers in faculty (with a 30% success charge) and 4 in his lone season at UK. His free-throw capturing additionally leaves a lot to be desired, as he by no means made greater than 66% of his foul pictures in any of his collegiate campaigns.
Williams averaged 10.9 factors, 8.5 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.2 blocks and a couple of.3 turnovers per recreation for the Wildcats this previous season, beginning all 36 video games he performed. He totaled 23 rebounds and 4 blocks in Kentucky’s two NCAA event wins over Troy and Illinois.
At 23, Williams is a a lot older prospect than Boston’s first-round choose, 19-year-old Spanish wing Hugo Gonzalez (twenty eighth total). The percentages of second-round picks changing into respectable NBA contributors are slim, and Williams is extra more likely to see motion within the G League as a two-way participant, however there may very well be alternatives for taking part in time within the Celtics’ new-look frontcourt.
The Celtics traded beginning middle Kristaps Porzingis to Atlanta earlier within the week, and backups Al Horford and Luke Kornet each are impending free brokers, although president of basketball operations Brad Stevens stated Wednesday that the workforce hopes to re-sign both. The one Boston bigs at present beneath contract for 2025-26 are Neemias Queta and Xavier Tillman, neither of whom was an everyday rotation participant this season.
Yahoo Sports activities’ Kevin O’Connor listed Queta as Williams’ No. 1 NBA participant comp. He was the 53rd-ranked prospect on O’Connor’s massive board. ESPN’s Jonathan Givony ranked him 57th, and The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie seen him because the Seventy fifth-best prospect on this class.
Boston obtained the commerce it used to take Williams in a commerce with the Orlando Magic, who additionally gave up the 57th choose and second-rounders in 2026 and 2027 to maneuver as much as No. 32 and choose French wing Noah Penda.
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