Celtics, 76ers agree to swap top picks; Philly expected to take Markelle Fultz
CAMDEN, N.J. -- The Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers have agreed in principle to swap the Nos. 1 and 3 picks in Thursday's NBA draft, and Philadelphia is expected to use the No. 1 pick on former Washington guard Markelle Fultz, sources told The Undefeated's Marc J. Spears, confirming news that was first reported by TNT's David Aldridge.
The Celtics will receive at least one additional first-round pick in the deal, sources told ESPN. Sources say Philadelphia, on top of its No. 3 overall pick, is sending the 2018 first-round pick it owns via theLos Angeles Lakers, which the Sixers acquired fromPhoenixat the 2015 trade deadline.
But if that Lakers pick doesn't fall between No. 2 and No. 5 in the 2018 draft, sources say, Philadelphia will instead send a 2019 first-rounder to Boston that it acquired from theSacramento Kings.
The trade is likely to be finalized on Monday, sources said.
Fultz worked out for the 76ers on Saturday, a day after ESPN reported the teams were in serious talks to swap their picks.
Fultz, donning a Philadelphia cap as he arrived at the team's practice facility, visited the 76ers in a hastily arranged get-to-know-you session, with the workout and a meeting with team officials on his itinerary. His visit was expected to be one of the final hurdles to clear before Boston and Philadelphia could decide to actually consummate the trade.
Joel Embiid was among Sixers players who were on hand for the workout. He tweeted a photo later Saturday, standing alongside Fultz and Sixers players Ben Simmons and Robert Covington.
Fultz said he was trying not to pay much attention to the trade talk.
"I let God take care of it," he said. "I wake up every morning and get ready to go to the gym. I don't really pay attention to everything that's going on. I'm truly blessed to be in this position. Whatever happens, I'm looking forward to taking my talents to wherever I go."
Once the trade is finalized, the first four spots in the draft order will exactly mirror the first-four order from last year: Philadelphia would have the No. 1 pick, the Lakers would have No. 2, Boston would have No. 3 and Phoenixwould have No. 4.
Fultz's rise to stardom has been rapid. In 2014, he was playing junior varsity basketball in high school. Barely three years later, he's expected to become the NBA's No. 1 pick. And if he gets to start his pro career in Philadelphia, he'll be roughly a 2-hour drive from his hometown of Upper Marlboro, Maryland.
"[The last few days have] been crazy, man," Fultz said. "Just knowing that the draft is a couple days away, it's been unbelievable. It's been a blessing. Like I said, a dream I always had. I'm just anxious to get to that day and just get it over with so I can know where I'm going and put full investment into whatever team I'm going to."
A 6-foot-4 guard, Fultz averaged 23.2 points, 5.7 rebounds and 5.9 assists in 25 games during his lone college season at Washington, excelling on a team that finished 9-22 and lost its final 13 games. Fultz led the Pac-12 in scoring and finished No. 6 among all Division I players, and he was the top freshman scorer in the country.
Over the past 10 seasons, only two other freshmen had a better scoring average in college: Kevin Durant for Texas in 2006-07 and Michael Beasley for Kansas State in 2007-08. Durant and Beasley were both No. 2 picks.
Philadelphia had the No. 1 draft spot on three previous occasions, taking Doug Collins in 1973, Allen Iverson in 1996 and Simmonsa year ago.
With Simmons missing all of last season with an injury, the 76ers could be the first team to have two rookie No. 1 overall picks on the same team.
The 76ers have a top-three pick for the fourth straight year: In addition to Simmons, they took Embiid at No. 3 in 2014 andJahlil Okaforat No. 3 in 2015. But with Fultz, Philadelphia -- which has asked its fans to endure some very dismal stretches and "Trust The Process" for the past few years -- would probably expect to turn a real corner toward respectability again.
Philadelphia went 28-54 this past season, after winning 19, 18 and 10 games in the previous three seasons.
Last season's improved win total came with 81 combined appearances from Okafor (50), Embiid (31) and Simmons (0).
However, Embiid and Dario Saric will finish in the top three when the NBA Rookie of the Year results are announced on June 26, and Simmons is expected to be ready for next season after recovering from foot surgery.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
