Prior to the
draft, the Celtics called No. 50 a "low-expectation"
pick. They wanted a big guy who would be willing to spend a
couple years overseas developing. General manager Chris Wallace
thought he got almost exactly that with Darius Songaila, a
Lithuanian-born power forward who spent the last four years
playing for Wake Forest. Songaila led the Demon Deacons in
scoring (17.9 points per game) and rebounding (8.1 per game) his
senior year and possesses a toughness that Boston liked.
Although the Celtics did not have him (or
anyone else) in for a predraft workout, they were also
encouraged by reports that he did a good job making shots from
NBA 3-point range. The Celtics also did not talk to Songaila
until after they had selected him, so they did not have any
commitment that he would gladly go overseas and develop for a
few more years.
And therein may lie a problem. When Songaila
was contacted draft night, he said he planned to attend the
Celtics training camp in the fall. If that's the case and
Songaila gets cut, the Celtics lose their rights to him. As it
stands, the Celtics expect to have a very tough roster to make
this fall. The Celtics have nine players with guaranteed
contracts, not including Omar Cook, and Wallace expects a roster
of no more than 13 players because of financial concerns. That
said, Wallace also has his sights set on resigning a number of
the team's free agents, of which there are five.
So, the Celtics may try to dissuade Songaila
from showing up at training camp, though that could prove a
tough sell because he is 24 years old and feels he's ready for
the NBA. The Celtics will get their first look at Songaila in a
Celtics uniform at the Shaw's Pro Summer League in mid-July. But
as far as whether or not Boston helped itself with the No. 50
pick, that remains to be seen, though it was always a case of
little ventured. The Celtics certainly would like to retain
their rights to Songaila, but if they don't, it will be far from
a crushing blow, especially if they get the returns from free
agency that they want.
WHAT'S NEXT
For the Celtics, the draft was merely a
formality, a prelude to the real decision-making process of the
summer. From the moment the Celtics' season ended, the real
focus of Wallace has been free agency, free agency, free agency.
Boston has five free agents to deal with in
the upcoming weeks -- Rodney
Rogers, Erick Strickland, Walter
McCarty, Mark Blount and
Roshown McLeod. The stated priority is Rogers, and what happens
with his negotiations will set the course for the rest of free
agency. With nine players under guaranteed contract for next
season and a payroll of $51.7 million that is precariously close
to the anticipated luxury tax threshold, the Celtics are in a
difficult financial position when it comes to free agency.
Wallace has said that Rogers enjoyed the time
he spent with the Celtics last season, liked the area, his
teammates, the style of his play and where he fit in, but the
real question is whether he'll have an issue with the money
being offered. The one thing in the Celtics favor is that almost
no team has a ton of money to spend on free agents, though it
only takes one.
The Celtics would like to re-sign a number of
their own, which likely means two or three. But if they are not
able to re-sign Rogers, then they would have to scramble to find
someone to fill his place, and that's something the Celtics
don't want to think about right now.
