NBA trade rumor: Celtics attempts to trade 3rd pick unsuccessful thus far

We all knew that Danny Ainge was looking to move the 3rd pick for established veterans and/or guys with star potential. Finding names that fit that description has been a little harder to come up with.

Marc Stein lists out several trade targets that (so far) Ainge hasn’t been able to pry away from other teams.

The Boston Celtics have been pursuing a number of established veterans in the buildup to Thursday's NBA draft, offering trade packages built around the No. 3 overall pick, according to league sources.

But sources told ESPN that the Celtics, to date, have been rebuffed in their efforts to assemble a sufficiently enticing deal to acquire any of these four prime targets: Chicago Bulls All-Star swingman Jimmy Butler, Utah Jazz guard Gordon Hayward and Milwaukee Bucks teammates Jabari Parker or Khris Middleton.

Stein is hearing that each of the above names are either not available or that the teams are not eager to trade them away.

Of course the timing of this lines up perfectly with classic negotiation strategy. Of course a GM is going to talk (to anyone who will listen) about how much they love their guys and how they wouldn’t trade them for anything less than a king’s ransom.

We’ll see just how much they love those players - and how far Danny will go to pry them away - on draft night.