Desmond Bane‘s surprising season with the Grizzlies makes him seem like a huge draft-night mistake by the Celtics, writes Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. Boston selected Bane with the 30th pick in 2020 and immediately traded him to Memphis for a pair of second-rounders because of luxury tax concerns. Bane has become a full-time starter in his second NBA season and is averaging 17.5 points and 4.5 rebounds through 44 games.
“I never knew it was Boston’s pick,” Bane recalled. “Everything was going on so fast, I had seen (the report) that the Grizzlies draft Desmond Bane at No. 30, so most guys put on the Celtics hat, I had a Grizzlies hat before they even put me on the TV screen. I was Grizzlies all the way.”
Bane has become an ideal backcourt partner for Ja Morant and has helped transform Memphis into a Western Conference contender at 30-15. He believes he should have been drafted higher and uses his status at No. 30 as inspiration.
“I’m always trying to keep the chip on my shoulder throughout all of it, regardless what I’ve done to this point in my career,” he said. “There’s still a lot of room to grow and improve.”
There’s more from the Southwest Division:
- Doug McDermott was one of the first Spurs players to enter health and safety protocols and one of the last to be cleared, per Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News. McDermott, who returned to the court Friday, was stuck in a Detroit hotel room for six days, then had to wait even longer after returning home because contagion-level tests showed that he still presented a danger. “It’s a tough way to learn, just having a ball and just myself in the gym,” he said after missing seven games. “It’s hard to simulate the NBA speed of the game.”
- Spurs guard Dejounte Murray is playing at an All-Star level, but he’s not enjoying it because the team isn’t winning, McDonald adds in a separate story. Murray has averaged 25.7 points, 8.5 rebounds, 9.5 assists and 2.2 steals over the past six games, but San Antonio is just 1-5 during that stretch. “When you lose, it wasn’t enough,” Murray said. “It means zero. I want no credit for losing basketball games.”
- Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison said it was difficult to tell Willie Cauley-Stein that he was being waived, tweets Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News. Harrison said the team will continue supporting Cauley-Stein through the personal situation that resulted in him not playing since late November.
Funny how they drafted Bane 30th and then traded him immediately cause of luxury tax.
Yet drafted Romeo Langford the year early 14th and he’s been poor, and Aaron Nesmith the same year as Bane 14th and he too has been poor in comparison.
Boston seem to draft well 20-30 and early second rounds with Bane (30), Grant Williams (22), Pritchard (26) and Rob Williams (27).
Looking ahead to this year Jean Montero could be that guy. He’s been very solid with the overtime elite boys. Julian Champagnie, Ousmane Deing and Roko Prkacin are good shouts too.
Drafting Bane then immediately trading him is just another example that profits are more important to our Boston Celtics hedge fund mentality & ownership than winning.
Another example is moving Brad Stevens, under a multiyear contract, upward. This way the owners save big bucks.
President Stevens & Coach Udoka & our team are facing a huge mountain and are going to have to be very lucky to win another NBA title under this ownership.
Still, Go Celtics!
Celts traded forward. Fans are always thinking their team should do that… until the bypassed player turns out… then execs are dumb for doing it.
Typical BOS scouting, right?
Picking lots of useless guys in the middle of the first round & letting go the good one at the end just to save a few cents, SMH!
Celtics also had our still needed 3rd scorer, twice. With Gordon Haywood & Even Fournier and both times we wouldn’t pay up. Jeez!
Murray is playing an All-Star season, that’s for sure!
I have him starting in the WC with Luka, sadly folks look at W-L to pick up the players instead of at their performance, as it should be, so he won’t be a starter… at least the coaches know better than so called fans & will pick him up to play anyway!
Nice joke. Ever heard of Ja Morant and Steph Curry?
Maybe the day they start playing as good as him, but if you can’t see that, well… you are beyond my help, right?
Dejounte Murray for Most Improved Player?
Been saying for a while if the Spurs were the Simmons destination I want Murray back.
Say so then on this site. Who else?
That’s what happens when you have way too many draft picks. You eventually end up giving away guys cuz you don’t have room. Then the guys you give away end up better than the guys you drafted. Thunder will run into this problem pretty soon.
Bane has been allowed to play with no one looking over his shoulder. Romeo can shut him down and Nesmith can put shoot him they just have been yanked and pulled.
It drives me nuts when guys say a team made a mistake by trading a player during the draft because you don’t know if he would of the same guy for that team and in Boston he probably wouldn’t play anyways