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The Boston Celtics went into Thursday’s draft with clear intentions: bolster their backcourt. This plan could have come as a bit of a surprise to Celtics fans who had seen little big man Isaiah Thomas fearlessly lead the team into the playoffs while his fellow running mate Marcus Smart finally started to look like someone who should have been taken in the lottery just one year ago. But head coach Brad Stevens saw a player in R.J. Hunter that he has known for years and believes could be the key to accelerating one of the NBA‘s most storied franchises back into serious playoff contention.
If you’re like most collegiate basketball fans, the name R.J. Hunter could seem as foreign to you as Kristaps Porzingis. Hunter played at little known Georgia State but saved his best moment for the biggest stage as the 6-foot-6 guard hit the game winning jump shot in the squad’s NCAA tournament first-round matchup with Baylor. It sent Hunter flying up the draft boards and his dad, who was his coach at the time, infamously flying off his chair and onto the floor in heap of joy.
For many this was the first glimpse at the lanky guard with the sweet stroke, but he has been knocking down jumpers with ease since Stevens saw Hunter playing as a high schooler when he was still at assistant coach at Butler University.
Steven pushed hard to bring Hunter to Butler, but like every other coach in the country, Stevens knew that Hunter was going to choose to play for his father at Georgia State. The next time Stevens had the chance to bring Hunter under his wing he was not going to be denied, which is why he will be wearing green, gold and white in TD Garden arena this fall.
RJ Hunter’s reaction to being picked by the Boston Celtics pic.twitter.com/rFsmsUKHkH
— Celtics Junkies (@CelticsJunkies) June 28, 2015
Hunter has a real chance to flourish under Stevens, who has a penchant for connecting with younger players and squeezing the most out of their talent reserves. For Hunter, he couldn’t have landed at better spot. The Celtics were in desperate need of jump shooting, which is Hunter’s specialty.
For starters, he is a legit 6-foot-6 with a 6-foot-10 wingspan, giving him a height advantage over many of the players he will see defending him in the league. His release may be unorthodox but it works, and works just about as well as any player in the entirety of the draft. The junior shot a combined 35.4 percent from three-point range in his three years on campus, but many scouts believe his actual shooting prowess to be much more elite. And it would have been if he didn’t constantly see the double and even triple teams he saw as the only real scorer on his team.
He averaged 18.4 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.9 steals in his time on campus, which only reiterates the fact that he can be more than just a catch and shoot player at the next level.
The bottom line is the fact that the Celtics and coach Stevens got great value for Hunter with the No. 28 overall pick. Stevens got a player who is hungry to make a name for himself on team that is hungry to take the next step in the NBA maturation process.
When Hunter was drafted on Thursday his dad Ron got a text message from Stevens that simply read “I told you I was gonna get your son one way or another.” Now it’s time for Hunter to get to work.
Douglas Ammon is an NBA Featured Writer for www.RantSports.com. Who covers all things about the Association, follow him on Twitter @DA76er
