Tag: Bol Bol

Celtics May Not Have Drafted 7’2″ Bol Bol, But They DID Sign 7’6″ Tacko Fall

ESPN – Tacko Fall, a 7-foot-6 center from UCF, will sign an Exhibit 10 contract with the Boston Celtics, a source told ESPN’s Jonathan Givony. Fall was not selected Thursday night during the NBA draft.

Fall averaged 10.1 points, 7.7 rebounds, 2.4 blocks and shot 74 percent from the field over his four-year collegiate career. During his senior season, he posted marks of 11.1 points, 7.6 rebounds, 2.6 blocks and hit 74.8 percent of his attempts.

Fall has attracted attention because of his size and because he held his own against Zion Williamson in UCF’s one-point loss to Duke in the NCAA tournament.

Exhibit 10 contracts, introduced in the NBA’s most recent collective bargaining agreement, are one-year deals paying the minimum salary. They also can be used for two-way contracts.

So technically the Celtics signed Tacko Fall to some phony bologna deal called an Exhibit 10 contract, which I have never even heard before this week.

“[Its] a one-year, non-guaranteed deal that allows teams to carry up to 20 players on their roster before the start of the regular season. If a player is waived before the season begins, he is then eligible for a $50,000 bonus if he joins the team’s G-League affiliate.” – Boston.com

What that means is Tacko will be given a shot to play for the C’s Summer League team in Vegas and then Danny will assess if he’s worth a flyer. Unless he absolutely savages people in the summer league I would not expect to see Tacko in a uniform that has anything other than a red lobster on the front next season.

If the name Tacko Fall sounds familiar to you, and like me you aren’t a giant college basketball guy, its most likely because he made you cry watching SportsCenter over your morning cereal.

So while I would not expect much from Tacko just yet, its hard to not be intrigued by a 7’6″ center. Especially since everyone and their mother has been bitching about the Celtics’ lack of a “rim protector” for my entire adult life. No doubt, we will keep you guys updated on how he does in the summer league this season.

The NBA Draft Was an A+ Fashion Show Per Usual

As per usual the NBA Draft was the can’t miss fashion show of the year. I mean even Maria Taylor was just straight up flaunting her neon Yeezys right in my face while interviewing each player.

This has become something I look forward to blogging every year and the boys in this year’s draft did not disappoint. Zion Williamson kicked off the night with his all white everything suit looking like the Kingpin.

Bol Bol, who I was PINING for the Celtics to draft, had arguably the best outfit of the night with his suit that will undoubtedly turn another NBA athlete into Venom sooner than later.

Ja Morant just looked like a guy straight out of the 90s and more specifically a fit you’d expect to see on the cover of someone’s Death Row Records debut album.

Assuming this isn’t a religious thing because if it is then forget what I’m about to say, but this is just a preposterous outfit for a guy who just became a millionaire. Legit looks like a Matrix set costume.

Okay, I spoke too soon because Jaxson Hayes had the outfit of the night with his custom Simpsons jewelry alone pushing him over the top.

While the ESPN analysts were not as kind, with one of them saying he looked like he was wearing drapes, I audibly gasped when I saw Tyler Herro’s suit.

A lot of loud outfits on draft night that you really have to be a rapper or an athlete, or at the very least a very wealthy Silicon Valley bro, to pull off.

Rounding things out was Nickeil Alexander-Walker-Texas-Ranger.

Until next year!

Celtics Have 3 Picks in the NBA Draft Tonight. BRING ME BOL BOL!

We are entering a youth movement. The sooner you accept that the sooner you can go back to watching Celtics games without smashing the TV. Now tonight is the NBA Draft and the Celtics have three first round picks, 14, 20, and 22. AKA trash picks. Picking that late in the NBA Draft gets you bench players and home run swings on high ceiling guys with massive red flags. Enter Bol Bol. This has been the only guy I’ve wanted the Celtics to draft all year long (assuming they didn’t backdoor their way into another top 5 pick, which they didn’t). Son of the NBA shot blocking legend Manute Bol, Bol Bol is one of the few college basketball players that I’ve somewhat followed this season because the dude just fascinates me. He is 7’2″, runs like a deer, oh and did I mention he DRAINS threes?

Now it seems like the Celtics drafting Bol Bol is a legitimate possibility tonight. Granted he is 7’2″ coming off a foot surgery, but hey scared money don’t make no money.

It looks like the masses are coming around to my line of thinking too as the Sporting News has the C’s taking Bol at No. 22, the NY Post has the C’s taking Bol at No. 22, and CBS Sports has the Celtics drafting Bol at No. 20 tonight. ESPN currently has Bol ranked at No. 15 in their Top 100.

Either way, just about everyone has the big man sliding to the 14-25 range in the first round, so if they want him the Celtics will likely have ample opportunity to grab him.

The Ringer had a great piece on just how dangerous the big man could be in the league:

“At 19, he already possesses an offensive arsenal that should make him a gamebreaker in the modern NBA…his shot is the skill which makes him an NBA player. He hit on 52 percent of his 25 attempts at Oregon and 48.9 percent on 45 attempts on the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League circuit…I don’t think I’ve ever seen a player of his height as fast or dexterous.And that’s scary. Momentum is mass times velocity, and Bol generates an awful lot of momentum on his skinny legs.”

He would have been a Top 5 pick if not for the injury or if he were able to go straight from high school to the draft, which cannot return to NBA rules soon enough. However the injury derailed his one and only college season and hurt his draft stock. Bol played in just 9 games at Oregon averaging 21.0 points, 9.6 rebounds, 2.7 blocks, 56.1 field goal %, and an eye popping 52.0% on 3 pointers.

While a foot injury to a 7 footer scares the shit out of me, this is EXACTLY why Danny Ainge has all these picks.  In the absence of an Anthony Davis mega deal, you have three first rounders so you can take a flyer on a guy like Bol. While he could flame out and never make an impact in the league, he could also drink some more milk, solidify his bones and become one of the best players in the NBA. The last time Danny passed on an unproven, high ceiling player was in 2013 when he passed on Giannis Antetokounmpo in favor of Kelly Fucking Olynyk. While Olynyk has become a decent role player in the NBA, Giannis is arguably the best player in the league right now. This isn’t the NFL where you can build quality depth through the draft with mid round picks. No, the 14th pick in the NBA draft gets you bench players and home run swings. There are very few elite NBA players that come this late in the draft without some major red flags around them.

Barring a massive draft night trade (which allegedly is a possibility), the Celtics are staring a youth movement right in the face. Bring me Bol Bol and lets swing for the fences, Danny.