The 2015 NBA draft is just two days away, and the speculation as to which player each franchise will pin its hopes on for the future is nearly over. Of course, having one of the top selections in any draft doesn’t guarantee that a team will snag a future All-Star. Team executives and scouts still have the difficult task of making the correct call with their picks.
With this in mind we at Hoops Rumors have been taking a look back at the draft history of the primary basketball executive for each NBA team. Their names, reputations, and possibly employment will be on the line as a result of the decisions to come on June 25th, and we’ve been examining what they’ve done in previous years in charge of a club’s front office. Note that many of them have played other sorts of roles within a team’s executive structure, but this won’t take that into account. We’ll continue onward with a look back at the calls made by Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge.
Celtics (May 2003-Present)
2003 Draft
- No. 13 Overall — Marcus Banks*: 348 games, 5.9 PPG, 1.5 RPG, 2.1 APG. .432/.327/.768.
- N0. 27 Overall — Kendrick Perkins*: 744 games, 5.5 PPG, 5.9 RPG, 1.2 BPG. .530/.000/.597.
- No. 56 Overall — Brandon Hunter: 67 games, 3.3 PPG, 2.8 RPG, 0.3 APG. .476/.000/.488.
*Acquired from Grizzlies in exchange for the No. 16 overall pick (Troy Bell) and the No. 20 overall pick (Dahntay Jones).
Notable players available: David West (No. 18), Steve Blake (No. 38), Mo Williams (No. 47), and Kyle Korver (No. 51).
2004 Draft
- No. 15 Overall — Al Jefferson: 766 games, 17.0 PPG, 9.1 RPG, 1.6 APG. .499/.129/.710.
- No. 24 Overall — Delonte West: 432 games, 9.7 PPG, 2.9 RPG, 3.6 APG. .448/.372/.826.
- No. 25 Overall — Tony Allen: 663 games, 8.1 PPG, 3.2 RPG, 1.4 APG. .479/.271/.723.
- No. 40 Overall — Justin Reed: 136 games, 3.5 PPG, 1.4 RPG, 0.5 APG. .404/.000/.752.
Notable players available: J.R. Smith (No. 18), Jameer Nelson (No. 20), Kevin Martin (No. 26), Anderson Varejao (No. 30), and Trevor Ariza (No. 43).
2005 Draft
- No. 18 Overall — Gerald Green: 428 games, 10.2 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 1.0 APG. .425/.368/.818.
- No. 50 Overall — Ryan Gomes: 487 games, 10.1 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 1.5 APG. .445./.349/.799.
- No. 53 Overall — Orien Greene: 131 games, 2.5 PPG, 1.5 RPG, 1.2 APG. .387/.212/.642.
Notable players available: David Lee (No. 30), Monta Ellis (No. 40), Louis Williams (No. 45), and Marcin Gortat (No. 57).
2006 Draft
- No. 21 Overall — Rajon Rondo*: 573 games, 10.8 PPG, 4.7 RPG, 8.3 APG. .470/.263/.609.
- No. 49 Overall — Leon Powe**: 239 games, 6.2 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 0.3 APG. .515/.000/.682.
*Acquired from the Suns along with Brian Grant in exchange for a 2007 first round pick (Rudy Fernandez).
**Acquired from Nuggets in exchange for a 2007 second-rounder (Aaron Gray).
***Traded the No. 7 overall pick (Randy Foye), Dan Dickau, and Raef LaFrentz in exchange for Theo Ratliff, Sebastian Telfair, and a 2008 second round pick (Trent Plaisted).
Notable players available: Rudy Gay (No. 8), J.J. Redick (No. 11), Kyle Lowry (No. 24), and Paul Millsap (No. 47).
2007 Draft
- No. 32 Overall — Gabe Pruitt: 62 games, 2.0 PPG, 0.8 RPG, 0.8 APG. .321/.283/.783.
- No. 35 Overall — Glen Davis*: 514 games, 8.0 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 0.9 APG. .447/.182/.700.
*Acquired from the Thunder along with Ray Allen in exchange for the No. 5 overall pick (Jeff Green), Wally Szczerbiak, Delonte West, and Plaisted.
Notable players available: Joakim Noah (No. 9), Thaddeus Young (No. 12), Arron Afflalo (No. 27), Carl Landry (No. 31), Josh McRoberts (No. 37), and Marc Gasol (No. 48).
2008 Draft
- No. 30 Overall — J.R. Giddens: 38 games, 1.9 PPG, 1.4 RPG, 0.3 APG. .476/.000/.565.
- No. 60 Overall — Semih Erden: 69 games, 3.8 PPG, 2.8 RPG, 0.4 BPG. .546/.000/.594.
Notable players available: DeAndre Jordan (No. 35), Omer Asik (No. 36), and Goran Dragic (No. 45).
2009 Draft
- No. 58 Overall — Lester Hudson: 57 games, 4.7 PPG, 1.4 RPG, 1.2 APG. .375/.277/.806.
*First round pick, No. 28 overall, owned by Wolves and used to select Wayne Ellington.
Notable players available: Patrick Beverley (No. 42), Danny Green (No. 46), and Patty Mills (No. 55).
2010 Draft
- No. 19 Overall — Avery Bradley: 282 games, 10.5 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 1.5 APG. .434/.360/.781.
- No. 52 Overall — Luke Harangody: 70 games, 3.6 PPG, 2.8 RPG, 0.5 APG. .376/.241/.737.
Notable players available: Hassan Whiteside (No. 33) and Lance Stephenson (No. 40).
2011 Draft
- No. 27 Overall — JaJuan Johnson*: 36 games, 3.2 PPG, 1.6 RPG, 0.4 BPG. .446/.000/.667.
- No. 55 Overall — E’Twaun Moore: 248 games, 5.4 PPG, 1.5 RPG, 1.6 APG. .411/.349/.766.
*Acquired from the Nets along with a 2014 second round pick in exchange for the No. 25 overall pick (MarShon Brooks).
Notable players available: Jimmy Butler (No. 30), Chandler Parsons (No. 35), and Isaiah Thomas (No. 60).
2012 Draft
- No. 21 Overall — Jared Sullinger: 177 games, 11.4 PPG, 7.4 RPG, 1.6 APG. .440/.275/.762.
- No. 22 Overall — Fab Melo: 6 games, 1.2 PPG, 0.5 RPG, 0.3 BPG. .500/.000/.250.
- No. 51 Overall — Kris Joseph: 10 games, 0.9 PPG, 0.7 RPG, 0.1 APG. .143/.000/.625.
Notable players available: Draymond Green (No. 35) and Khris Middleton (No. 39).
2013 Draft
- No. 13 Overall — Kelly Olynyk*: 134 games, 9.4 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 1.6 APG. .471/.349/.744.
- Second round pick owned by the Trail Blazers, used to select Marko Todorovic.
*Acquired from Mavericks in exchange for the No. 16 overall pick (Lucas Nogueira) and 2 future second-rounders.
Notable players available: Giannis Antetokounmpo (No. 15) and Rudy Gobert (No. 27).
2014 Draft
- No. 6 Overall — Marcus Smart: 67 games, 7.8 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 3.1 APG. .367/.335/.646.
- No. 17 Overall — James Young: 31 games, 3.4 PPG, 1.4 RPG, 0.4 APG. .353/.258/.552.
- Second round pick owned by Knicks, used to select Cleanthony Early.
Notable players available: Elfrid Payton (No. 10), Zach LaVine (No. 13), Rodney Hood (No. 23), K.J. McDaniels (No. 32), and Jordan Clarkson (No. 46).