The Boston Celtics will head into the 2025 NBA draft armed with a pick in the first round (No. 28 overall), and another at the top of the second round (No. 32 overall). They will also have a few mandates in terms of what they are looking to address with the draft.
That includes adding cheap depth to a roster that is already set to be a historically expensive payroll and tax bill, and in terms of positionality, Boston has a need to add depth to their frontcourt and guard rotation in particular. The ’25 cohort of draft prospects has a fair amount of big men who would likely be able to contribute in a reserve role immediately.
But which ones are in range for the Celtics to take where they are drafting — or are projected low enough that it would not be especially onerous for Boston to trade up to?
Let’s take a look at some of the better big man prospects in range of the Celtics to take (all stats from 2024-25 season).
Eric Dixon, Villanova
Age, height, and weight: 24, 6-foot-8.75, 259 lbs.
Position: power forward
Pros: 40.7% from 3 on 7.2 attempts/game, scorer
Cons: Not a great rebounder/defender
Range: Late second round to undrafted (trade back?)
-oOo-
Hansen Yang, Qindao Eagles
Age, height, and weight: 19, 7-foot-2, 253 lbs.
Position: center
Pros: Plus distributor (2.8 assists/game), rim protector (2.7 blocks/game)
Cons: High turnovers, (3.1 per game) for a big, poor 3-point shot (28.6%)
Range: mid- to late second round (trade back?)
-oOo-
Bogoljub Markovic, KK Mega Basket
Age, height, and weight: 19, 6-foot-11, 190 lbs.
Position: power forward
Pros: Solid outside shot (37.0%), decent, mobile defender, draws fouls well
Cons: Not especially great at anything
Range: early to mid-second round (trade back?)
-oOo-
Johni Broome, Auburn
Age, height, and weight: 22, 6-foot-10.5, 249 lbs.
Position: forward/center
Pros: Good distributor (2.9 assists/game), rebounder (10.8/game), rim protector (2.1 blocks/game)
Cons: Poor free throw (58.7%), 3-point shot (27.8%)
Range: Early second round
-oOo-
Maxime Raynaud, Stanford
Age, height, and weight: 22, 7-foot-1.5, 237 lbs.
Position: center
Pros: Scorer, 3-point shot (34.7% on 5.5 attempts/game), rebounder (10.6/game)
Cons: Higher turnovers for a big
Range: Early to mid-second
-oOo-
Ryan Kalkbrenner, Creighton
Age, height, and weight: 23, 7-foot-2, 257 lbs.
Position: center
Pros: Scorer, solid (34.4%) 3-point shot
Cons: Poor lateral mobility
Range: Late first round
-oOo-
Danny Wolf, Michigan
Age, height, and weight: 21, 6-foot-11.75, 252
Position: center
Pros: Great passer (4.2 assists/game), solid rebounder (9.7/game)
Cons: High turnovers (3.2/game), slow running the floor
Range: late first round (trade up?)
-oOo-
Rasheer Fleming, St. Joseph’s
Age, height, and weight: 20, 6-foot-8, 232 lbs.
Position: power forward
Pros: Great 3-point shot (39.0% on 4.5 attempts/game), defender (1.5 blocks, 1.4 steals/game)
Cons: mediocre leaper, but offset by 7-foot-5 wingspan
Range: Late first round (trade up?)
This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Eight big men for the Celtics to target in the 2025-26 NBA draft