The Philadelphia 76ers and Boston Celtics have agreed in principle on a trade where the 76ers would acquire the chance to take Markelle Fultz with the No. 1 pick in Thursday's NBA Draft, a person with knowledge of the deal said.
Smith said on "First Take" Monday that the trade between the Celtics and 76ers that will send the first overall pick to Philly is tied Boston's pursuit of Bulls forward Jimmy Butler. The 76ers will be giving up their 2018 first-round pick that was received via the Los Angeles Lakers which Philly acquired during the 2015 National Basketball Association season from the Phoenix Suns. Otherwise, the Celtics will have a choice between the better 2019 first-round pick between Sacramento or Philadelphia. Even a young team of D'Angelo Russell, Brandon Ingram, Julius Randle, and George [VIDEO] could be a number nine or ten seed in the West.
Markelle Fultz is expected by many to be the No. 1 pick in the draft. The team believes that same player will be available to them now in the third slot. With the Lakers zeroing in on UCLA guard Lonzo Ball, all signs point to Ainge taking Kansas swingman Josh Jackson with the third pick. More than ever, he's the heavy favorite to get his wish to play for his hometown team. While Brown has some long-term promise still, there's something of a roster redundancy going on in Boston that's going to get solved via another trade sooner than later. They're big on defense so I think the tools that I have to be a defensive player I think would help them get out in transition.
"He can shoot. I thought (in college) he could do everything offensively". The 76ers will have a frontcourt of scorers in Joel Embiid, Dario Saric, and Robert Covington. They had the task of pitching the Celtics with their most juicy deal possible.
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Mexico equalized eight minutes later through a Javier Javier Hernandez diving header after poor defending by the Portuguese. It was harsh on Mexico who had done most of the running, but Portugal have mastered the art of striking on the break.
"It's very good value for us, and obviously (Philadelphia) wanted that No. 1 pick", said Ainge.
The 6-foot-4 Fultz. who has a wingspan of 6-9 3/4, averaged 23.2 points, 5.9 assists, 5.7 rebounds and shot 41.3 percent from 3-pointers during his only collegiate season. The Sixers used the No. 1 pick past year on Ben Simmons, who missed the entire season because of a foot injury. The Celtics didn't really need the top pick, as Fultz and Ball have been looked at as the top options, but both are point guards.
Philadelphia went 28-54 this past season, after winning 19, 18 and 10 games respectively in the previous three seasons.
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