Why did the Boston Celtics decide to trade back in the second round of the 2025 NBA draft? Fans of the Celtics thought there was a good chance any of several of their favorite prospects still on the board at No. 32 overall were perhaps a bit disappointed by Boston dealing the pick to the Orlando Magic for four second round draft picks, using the two from the 2025 draft to take University of Kentucky big man Amari Williams and VCU guard Max Shulga at Nos. 46 and 57 respectively.
To get an answer, the media asked Celtics Vice President of Basketball Operations Mike Zarren why Boston traded back in the draft once the second round was over on Thursday night. “All the time, we are looking for the ability to get more assets in the future and still get a bunch of good players, and we felt pretty confident that there’d be guys we liked lower in the draft,” said Zarren via CLNS Media.
“We had the ability to add a couple of really good future draft picks in addition to getting those guys,” added the Celtics vice president. “So that’s what we did.”
It might irk some Boston fans to have passed on any of several coveted prospects, but it is hard to argue against having players coming back not too far removed from the level of what they might find where they had started the night as well as additional picks for more bites at the apple in the future, or tools to sweeten trades.
It might not be the move fans were expecting, but there is sound logic behind the strategy.
This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Why the Celtics chose to trade back in the 2nd round of the 2025 draft
