NBA Trade Rumors: Celtics Draft Pick Markelle Fultz Wanted By Sacramento Kings, Major Trade Coming Soon?
Some new NBA trade rumors have started up about the possibility of an NBA Draft pick possibly being in play. The Boston Celtics currently own the No. 1 overall pick, and most of the consensus mock drafts online are suggesting Washington’s Markelle Fultz will be the top choice. However, another team has entered the picture and had Fultz work out for them. Could the Sacramento Kings possibly find a way to trade up in the NBA Draft and grab Fultz for their roster?
As ESPN reported on Friday, Markelle Fultz agreed to workout with the Sacramento Kings. It was previously reported that the Washington Huskies guard would only audition his basketball skills for the Boston Celtics. With this latest report, it appears Fultz is seeing the possibility of playing for other teams. However, the Kings own the No. 5 and No. 10 draft picks in the upcoming NBA Draft, and Fultz has not been said to drop as low as the fifth pick. That could indicate that Sacramento will try to trade up, and it may even indicate a multiple-team, picks, and players deal is involved. Would the Kings trade both of their top 10 picks for just the No. 1 choice, and would Boston even go for that deal?
About a week ago, Fultz spoke to ESPN‘s Chris Forsberg and said he has yet to be told by Boston that they’ll make him their top pick on June 22nd.
“No, no, no, they didn’t say that. They didn’t put that out there. I gotta earn everything. Just talking to them, we didn’t really talk about me getting drafted or anything like that, but more about me being a better young man, no matter where I go. Just what’s going to make me the best player I can possibly be.”
Many of the NBA mock drafts going around are speculating that Fultz will go No. 1 to the Celtics, and Lonzo Ball at No. 2 to the Lakers. After that, teams will be trying to figure out the best picks available for their situation at their specific spots. At No. 5, Sacramento can still probably get a decent point guard, but not Markelle Fultz. The Kings might be hoping for Kentucky’s De’Aaron Fox to fall to that spot, although Draft Express has him going fourth overall in their mock draft picks to the Phoenix Suns. Some analysts believe the Sixers might go after Fox first.
Of course, NBA trade rumors run rampant at the sign of any sort of possibility. Since Fultz is another point guard, and the Celtics have an All-Star point guard in Isaiah Thomas, there are those who feel having two talented PGs on the roster makes little sense. Still, there are plenty of people who feel the Boston Celtics will keep the top pick and make that smart choice. As Sportsrageous reported, Fultz is confident that he’ll be the No. 1 pick even if Boston hasn’t told him he would be.
He even mentioned that he feels he’ll fit into the Celtics’ system along with current All-Star guard Isaiah Thomas, as one of them could play the “2-guard position.” There’s also the fact that both guards played their college ball at Washington University. Fultz mentioned he thinks the Boston fans are great and would feed off the energy, while also being more motivated (and mentored) by playing alongside Thomas.
As mentioned, the trade possibilities are there for the Boston Celtics. They could trade down for the No. 5 pick and grab another future pick from Sacramento for the 2018 NBA Draft. Or it’s possible there could be another team involved in the deal or a superstar player. A three-team deal might not be far-fetched as there are possible stars in the league who may want out of town right now.
Rumors have suggested the Celtics might target free agents like Paul George, Jimmy Butler, Blake Griffin, or Gordon Hayward. One of them may even let his team know of their intentions to leave, allowing the team to trade rather than just lose them to free agency. With all that in mind, it should be interesting to see if anything unfolds involving the Pacers, Jazz, Clippers, as well as the Kings and Celtics.
[Featured Image by Christian Petersen/Getty Images]
