Tales from CelticsBlog Slack: wrapping up our Celtics fantasy draft starters

Steve Hooper: OK, with my 3rd round pick. I am taking the gloves off, I’m going for Tommy Heinsohn. I never watched him play live (before my time) but the big fella is deserving of a spot on this great team I am assembling. Heck, he can help out with coaching while I am in the film room. Heinsohn is an avid advocate of the running game and pushing the tempo which is the way I am looking to play. Plus, I get a guy who will win me votes with the judges and someone I can swear at the refs with.

Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images

Greg Brueck-Cassoli: Dang, I was hoping Heinsohn might hang around a bit. But in his absence I’m going with another slightly reckless and abundantly skilled forward. Give me Antoine Walker. Give me those crazy transition attacks, no look passes, and quick trigger from deep. Give me the Walker Wiggle. I’m banking on Russell mentoring/scaring Walker into tapping into his potential in a way was never quite able during his playing career.

Jack Noonan: With the third round pick, we will be taking Dennis Johnson. Now, even as his career with the Celtics only spanned seven years, he was still a dynamic point guard in his era. He was known for his lockdown defense around the perimeter. Johnson was a huge part of the 80’s Celtics team winning two championships and making an All-Star Game for his Celtic career. He will bring underrated playmaking and elite defense to this team.

Adam Spinella: Our next selection flanks our two stars with arguably the best outside shooter in Celtics history - Ray Allen. Though his exit was polarizing, there’s no denying that Ray Ray was a massive offensive threat during his time in Beantown. He shot over 40 percent from 3-point range in his five seasons, helped the C’s to two NBA Finals appearances, and made three All-Star games.

Adam Taylor: Ugh, I was so hopeful Allen was going to fall to me. With my pick, I will add a scoring two guard in Sam Jones. Jones had an amazing career with the Celtics scoring more than 15.000 points.

Bill Sy: My next two picks are the perfect dichotomy of potential reached and what could have been. Al Horford spent only three seasons in Boston and neither ended with a trip to the Finals, but his impact on the floor as the hub of Brad Stevens’ offensive and defensive system was immeasurable by the numbers. He fits in as a modern 5 or a classic power forward on any team.

Jo Jo White, on the other hand, spent a decade in green that included seven All-Star seasons and two championships. Like Horford, White was the epitome of the complimentary star teammate, playing his Celtics career primarily supporting Dave Cowens and John Havlicek. The ‘76 Finals MVP lead the team in post season scoring averaging 22.7 points per game.

Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images

Adam Taylor: Big fan of my next picks game - a slight reach this early in the draft. But I’m adding a reliable “do it all” wing in Gordon Hayward.

Adam Spinella: In sticking with a small-ball theme for our starting group, we are going to take Cedric Maxwell as our 4-man. A tremendous athlete, finisher and free throw shooter, the man known as “Cornbread” was a part of two Celtics title teams. Maxwell was the Finals MVP in 1981 and helped anchor the early returns of the C’s to dominance in the 1980’s.

Jack Noonan: In the fourth round, I will select Danny Ainge. In Ainge we trust. He would give this team some superb shooting and scoring while also being able to handle the ball. He would be a nice fit at the two-guard position. The fit and chemistry with McHale is already in place and will give defenses fits when they have to stick on Ainge out on the arc. Ainge can score and bring leadership while also being the underrated player/GM.

Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images

Greg Brueck-Cassoli: I take Jaylen Brown, and my heart is so, so full.

Steve Hooper: Ok, so in the 4th round, with all these gunners on this team, I need a guy to distribute the rock. I’m thinking Rajon Rondo here, a classic unselfish guy and able to get the ball to Bird and Lewis in the spots they need it.

I’ll grab Al Jefferson to be my center, a big man with best the post moves in his prime since Kevin McHale.

Greg Brueck-Cassoli: With my next pick, I am taking Tiny Archibald. Someone has to steer this ship. Who better than a six-time NBA All-Star with the quickness to consistently breakdown defenses and kick to our many willing shooters?

Jack Noonan: Unfortunately it may be too early to take Tacko Fall, so instead, with my fifth round pick, I will take Paul Silas. He will add to this defense first team as he notched five All-Defensive awards in his four seasons with Boston. Silas flew under the radar in the early 70s, but he was a force on the glass. He averaged a season double double each of his four years with the Celtics. He will bring some the additional defense and rebounding to this team down low.

Adam Spinella: One of the most athletic guards in C’s history, Dee Brown will round out our starting 5. A solid scorer, the 1991 Slam Dunk champion was robbed of his prime as he was just getting heated up, as microfracture surgery slowed his athleticism. He was a lone bright spot in a decade of dull Celtics.

Adam Taylor: With my next pick, I’m going for a reliable mid-range game and out-and-our professionalism at the four - selecting Brandon Bass

Bill Sy: So, I’m looking at the banners and all the retired numbers. By my count, we’ve overlooked many of the 50’s and 60’s Celtics legends: Satch Sanders, Don Nelson, Bill Sharman, Ed Macauley, Frank Ramsey, K.C. Jones, and Jim Loscutoff. I’ve read enough of our resident historian, Professor Parquet, to convince me that Bill Sharman will be my two-guard. The sweet shooting Sharman was an eight-time All-Star and was 1st Team All-NBA for four consecutive seasons in his prime. I’ve got smart players on my team (another coming, hint hint), but in Sharman, I’ve got a guy that would later coach the Lakers (ugh) to a championship and was the architect to their ridiculous 33-game winning streak.

After five rounds, who has the best starting five: