Boston Celtics: Ranking the last 10 first-round draft picks by the Celtics
9. James Young
In 2014, after drafting Marcus Smart, the Boston Celtics also selected James Young with the 17th overall pick in the NBA Draft. The young freshman from Kentucky averaged 14.3 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game in his only college season. Young showed a great amount of confidence and promise for his NBA career as he was heading into the draft.
Unfortunately for the Celtics, Young did not transition into the NBA as well as everyone was expecting. In fact, he spent more time with the Maine Red Claws during his rookie season than he did with the Celtics. Young was on the team for three seasons of which he did not play more than 31 games in each season. In 89 total games with the C’s over a three-year span, Young only averaged 2.3 points per game.
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The Celtics parted ways with Young in the 2017 offseason. From there he would join multiple G-League affiliate teams but would continuously find himself being waived or cut from the roster. Young is now playing in the Israel Premier League for Maccabi Haifa where he averaged 20.5 points per game last season.
It’s fair to say that perhaps Young would have benefited from another year or two in the NCAA to better prepare him for the NBA.