Draft position doesn't matter. Only what you do on the court matters.
In the desert heat of Las Vegas, the Boston Celtics offered a quiet reminder that talent in professional basketball does not always announce itself with a lottery number. Facing three high-profile draft picks from the Golden State Warriors, it was the overlooked and undrafted who carried the night — a 103-92 victory that invites reflection on how organizations find, and sometimes fail to see, the players already within their reach. The game was less a contest than a philosophical provocation: what does it mean to be valued, and by whom, and on what evidence?
- Boston's Summer League roster, built largely from undrafted and lower-round finds, dismantled a Warriors squad stacked with lottery picks — exposing the gap between draft prestige and actual performance.
- Mfiondu Kabengele outplayed James Wiseman so thoroughly that the Celtics' ongoing search for a backup big man now has an uncomfortable internal answer staring back at them.
- Brodric Thomas shot 63.2% from three in Vegas with zero turnovers across the game, making a quiet but forceful case for a return to the organization that reached the Finals with him.
- Teenager Juhann Begarin dazzled with athleticism and rim pressure, then unraveled with five turnovers — a portrait of a player whose ceiling is visible but whose floor still needs construction.
- With one Summer League game remaining against Memphis, the real competition is already over: Boston must now decide whether it trusts what it has already found.
The Boston Celtics walked into Cox Pavilion in Las Vegas on Tuesday night facing three lottery picks from the Golden State Warriors and left with a 103-92 victory that raised genuine questions about where talent actually lives in professional basketball.
The game was never close. Four players did nearly all the work: Justin Jackson scored 24, Juhann Begarin added 21, Mfiondu Kabengele put up 20, and Brodric Thomas contributed 18 — accounting for 83 of the team's 103 points. Of that quartet, only Jackson was a first-round pick. The rest were undrafted or lower-round finds.
Kabengele was the night's most arresting story. The 24-year-old from Florida State recorded his second consecutive double-double with 20 points and 13 rebounds, playing with a Robert Williams-like athleticism — converting alley-oops, throwing a behind-the-back pass while falling out of bounds. More pointedly, he outplayed Wiseman, the Warriors' lottery center, who managed just six points in 21 minutes. Through three Vegas games, Kabengele averaged 16.3 points, 10 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.3 blocks. The Celtics have been searching the market for a backup big. The question now is whether they've been overlooking someone already in their system.
Brodric Thomas may have been the most complete player on the floor — shooting 63.2% from three over three games, grabbing five rebounds, dishing two assists, and committing zero turnovers. A two-way contract player who reached the Finals with Boston in 2022, his performance makes a strong case for a return.
Begarin, the 19-year-old French prospect, showed the explosiveness that made him worth drafting — getting to the rim almost at will and hitting two threes after struggling the night before. But five turnovers revealed the discipline gap that still separates his potential from his readiness. The upside is real. The work is not finished.
In a league obsessed with draft position, the real takeaway from this win is already clear: sometimes the players who slip through the cracks are the ones worth watching most carefully.
The Boston Celtics walked into the Cox Pavilion in Las Vegas on Tuesday night facing three lottery picks from the Golden State Warriors—James Wiseman, Jonathan Kuminga, and Moses Moody—and left with a 103-92 victory that raised some genuine questions about where talent actually lives in professional basketball.
The game itself was never close. Boston jumped ahead early and sustained that lead throughout, with four players doing nearly all the work: Justin Jackson scored 24 points, Juhann Begarin added 21, Mfiondu Kabengele put up 20, and Brodric Thomas contributed 18. Together they accounted for 83 of the team's 103 points. The Celtics shot 43.3 percent from three-point range, making 13 of 30 attempts, and improved to 2-1 in Summer League play. Of that quartet, only Jackson was a first-round pick—the 15th overall selection. The rest were either undrafted or lower-round finds.
Kabengele, a 24-year-old from Florida State, was the night's most arresting story. He recorded his second consecutive double-double with 20 points and 13 rebounds, adding two blocks and playing a style of basketball that recalled Robert Williams at his most athletic—converting alley-oops with ease and even threading a behind-the-back pass while falling out of bounds, a moment that circulated on social media as a highlight unto itself. More significantly, he outplayed Wiseman, the Warriors' lottery-pick center, who managed just six points in 21 minutes. Through three games in Vegas, Kabengele was averaging 16.3 points, 10 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.3 blocks. The Celtics have been searching the free-agent and trade markets for a backup big man. The question now is whether they've been overlooking someone already in their system.
Brodric Thomas, a 25-year-old guard, may have been the most complete player on the floor. He shot 7 of 12 from the field and made 4 of 7 three-pointers, grabbed five rebounds, dished two assists, and committed zero turnovers. Over three games in Vegas, he was shooting 63.2 percent from distance—12 of 19. Thomas earned a two-way contract with Boston last season and was part of the roster that reached the NBA Finals in 2022. His performance suggests he should find his way back into the organization in some capacity.
Juhann Begarin, the 19-year-old French prospect, showed why the Celtics drafted him: he's explosively athletic and gets to the rim almost at will. He hit two three-pointers after struggling from distance the night before against Milwaukee. But he also committed five turnovers, the most on the team, his offensive aggression occasionally working against him. For a player as young and raw as Begarin, that's a predictable growing pain. The upside is real. What he needs to develop is the discipline to maintain his attacking mentality while taking better care of the basketball.
The Celtics' final Summer League game is Thursday against Memphis. But the real takeaway from this win is already clear: in a league obsessed with draft position and lottery luck, sometimes the players who slip through the cracks are the ones worth watching most carefully.
Citações Notáveis
The Celtics have been searching the free-agent and trade markets for a backup big man. The question now is whether they've been overlooking someone already in their system.— Analysis of Mfiondu Kabengele's performance
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
Why does a Summer League game matter? Aren't these just warm-ups for players trying to make the roster?
They are, but they're also the only real evidence some players get. Kabengele and Thomas weren't lottery picks. Nobody was watching them closely before Vegas. Now the Celtics have to decide if they've been sitting on something valuable.
So Kabengele outplaying Wiseman—that's significant because Wiseman was drafted higher?
Exactly. Wiseman was a lottery pick. He should theoretically be the better player. But in Summer League, draft position doesn't matter. Only what you do on the court matters. Kabengele was better that night, and he's been better all week.
What does Brodric Thomas's 63 percent three-point shooting tell you?
That he's found something. He was on the Finals roster last year, so he knows what winning looks like. Now he's playing with confidence and precision. The Celtics have to ask themselves: why would we let this go?
And Begarin—five turnovers seems like a lot.
It is. But he's 19. He's learning the difference between being athletic and being smart. The turnovers are a problem, but they're fixable. The athleticism isn't something you teach.
Does the Celtics' front office actually pay attention to Summer League, or is this just noise?
They pay attention. Summer League is one of the few places where a player with no leverage can prove something. If Kabengele keeps playing like this, they have to at least consider him for the backup center role instead of chasing someone in free agency.