What's Danny Thinking?

Oh, I have absolutely no idea. But, here's the other part. Unless you're actually Danny Ainge (Hi Danny!) you have absolutely no idea either.

Sure, we were all pretty excited when the Celtics won the lottery for the number one pick. Finally we could get whichever star we wanted! I think we all convinced ourselves that there was one franchise player, and the Celtics were now in line to land him. The Celts were back on top! But, here's the deal. There's not always a franchise altering player available in the draft. Sometimes there's more than one. Just because you have the chance to get the best player means you're getting a hall of famer. Or, even that you're getting the best player. 

And sometimes getting the player your want does not mean you make the first selection in the draft.

Any number of things could be running through Danny's mind. Trading the number one pick away could be a first step. Collecting assets as a way to make another bigger move. There have certainly been several of those floated about in the last couple days. So many, in fact, that's I'm a little concerned that there will be a trade before I finish writing this. So, yes, Danny could package a boatload of picks and completely revamp the team.

Or, maybe he wants the number three pick. He said that he was thinking he could get the same player at three that he would take at one. If that's true, and not pre-draft misdirection, making a trade is the easiest call ever. If he thinks its worth rolling the dice and assuming two other teams won't take your guy, adding an additional pics while losing nothing is a no-brainer. Or, if Danny has a three way tie at the top in his mind. If he'd be happy with whichever player falls into his lap at three, again it's free money.

Which is where I personally think he falls. I think he's telling the truth when he says he'll draft a player he wants at three. Mostly because, otherwise, why make the deal so soon? If he was literally looking to add a boatload of assets, could he do better than two first round picks for his number one? Why not wait and see? So, I'm guessing he realized he needed to trade with either LA or Philly. He needed a top three pick. Or maybe top four. So, once you've limited yourself like that, it's harder to get the larger offers. 

So, he did the best he could collecting free money. Took the extra first rounder and will go home happy.

Unless he does something completely different.