Danny Ainge Overseas Scouting Celtics Draft Prospects Dragan Bender, Ante Zizic
By Brian Robb, CBS Boston
BOSTON (CBS) -- With the 2016 NBA Draft less than a one month away, it is tough to find a team with more prep work ahead than the Boston Celtics. Danny Ainge has amassed eight picks, which equals 13 percent of the 60 total selections made on draft night, and he has mere weeks to decide how he wants to manage that stockpile.
While it's all but a certainty the Celtics will trade some of the picks in that stash, the chance the team will elect to draft and stash players overseas is a real possibility. To help them explore that route, Boston's brain trust has been overseas this week to see a number of first round draft prospects firsthand, including potential No. 3 pick Dragan Bender.
The 7-foot-1 Bender is only 18 years old, but plays for one of the top teams in Israel (Maccabi Tel Aviv). He's been relegated to mostly bench duty with his squad, averaging just 4.3 points and 2.6 rebounds on the season, but has the kind of size, versatility and upside that will force the Celtics to give him a long look at No. 3. Austin Ainge, the team's director of player personnel, has made several trips to Europe in the past two seasons, helping the Celtics keep close tabs on the development of the top 2016 prospect, among others.
While Bender would likely join the Celtics' roster right away if selected at No. 3, Boston's two other first round picks (No. 16, No. 23) are ripe to be used on a prospect that needs seasoning. International basketball reporter David Pick confirmed this week that Ainge was in Croatia to view one potential big man candidate on that front, Ante Zizic.
Ainge himself confirmed the visit by posting a picture of himself in Croatia on Twitter.
Zizic is a 19-year-old center that has excelled in the Adriatic League despite his youth. With Boston already having 11 players under contract for the 2016-17 season, Ainge could have Zizic follow the path of Europeans like Dario Saric and Nikola Mirotic, who spent multiple years playing overseas for additional development after being drafted.
These evaluations will prove to be crucial for Ainge and co. before the team's scouting staff returns to Waltham next week for a long month of workouts of collegiate prospects. With potential blockbuster trade deals still on the table, gaining a sense of value for the draft's international class will do wonders for the team as it attempts to navigate the offseason waters and build upon a 48-win season.
Brian Robb covers the Celtics for CBS Boston and contributes to NBA.com, among other media outlets. You can follow him on Twitter @CelticsHub.
