The Celtics need a second round point guard this draft

Draymond Green, Chandler Parsons, Lance Stephenson. In addition to playing key roles on playoff teams this season, these three have another thing in common; all of them were selected in the second round of previous NBA Drafts.

Due to the rookie payscale, second round picks are given very low salaries when they enter the league so finding a contributor after the 30th pick can provide a team with immense value. Celtics fans are also familiar with successful second rounders as Glen Davis and Leon Powe played key roles in helping Boston win the 2008 NBA Championship.

The 2013 NBA Draft is regarded as a draft without a lot of high end, franchise-changing talent. That said, this draft also features a lot of players, projected to go in the second round, that could instantly help teams.

The Celtics currently do not have a second round pick in this year's draft; Boston sent it to Portland to get them to take Sasha Pavlovic as part of the Courtney Lee deal this past offseason.

It typically isn't difficult for a team to acquire a second round pick on draft night but nevertheless, Danny Ainge will need to weigh the costs and benefits of picking up a second round pick.

One thing that's unique about this year's draft is the abundance of second round caliber-point guard talent.

Players like Trey Burke and Michael Carter-Williams are sure to be off the board by the time David Stern announces the Celtics' 16th pick. Shane Larkin and Dennis Schroeder may be around, but that's no guarantee. As seen in the playoffs, the Celtics are in dire need of a pure point guard, especially until Rondo comes back, but even after that in order to allow Boston to ease him back into action.

The second round however, could feature as many as 8 point guards. The Celtics have already worked out Phil Pressey, Myck Kabongo, Pierre Jackson, Erick Green, and Peyton Siva; all of these guards are likely to be available in the second round. Nate Wolters of South Dakota State, Lorenzo Brown of North Carolina State, and Ray McCallum of Detroit are also point guard options at this point of the draft. The Celtics were exposed in the playoffs when their guards struggled to throw the basic entry passes to exploit the mismatches Boston needed to capitalize on.

It makes a lot of sense for the Celtics to try and get into the second round to grab one of these eight prospects. These eight players are all unique and bring different strengths to the table but any of them would be a welcome addition to the Celtics. Given the projected guard-centric second round, it may make the most sense to stay away from a point guard in the first round in order to address other needs first and get into the second round to grab a floor general in order to maximize the value of this draft class. Ainge has a few options, the first of which would be to purchase a selection. Every year teams are able to buy second round picks from other teams. Since this would involve giving up nothing in the way of talent, this would be the ideal option, if plausible.

Another option would be to move down in the first round. The middle of the first round is a tough spot to draft at because any mid-first round prospects could fly up the draft boards and vanish. It's quite likely that Steven Adams' recent workouts and interviews have caused him to rise up past where the Celtics could grab him. Another possibility is that a player once thought to be a Top 10 pick may fall and a team late in the first round may hope to trade up and pounce on that player. Guys like Shabazz Muhammad and Cody Zeller may fall come draft day. They may not fall to the Celtics at 16 but all it would take would be one team behind the Celtics to believe it's possible and make an offer. If the Celtics don't particularly like the draft board when they're placed on the clock, it would make sense to try to move down in the first round to pick up a second rounder in the process. If they could do this and still grab a contributor like Jeff Withey in the process, this could be a huge draft for the Celtics.

The last alternative would be to make a move and give up an asset. Jordan Crawford likely doesn't have much value right now, especially with his salary jumping to $2.2 million next season, but there's a chance he could fetch a second round pick. Fab Melo could be an possibility, but it seems too early to bail on a first rounder from last year for a second rounder this year, but could make sense if it's part of a bigger deal or if they draft Steven Adams. Lastly, the Celtics do have two second round picks next year; they have Brooklyn's from the MarShon Brooks-JaJuan Johnson deal from two years ago. Next year's draft class is going to be loaded and even second round picks should have value. Ainge will need to weigh the pros and cons of dealing a future pick in a stronger draft for a pick this year, but that could be a possibility.

The Celtics sit in a spot where grabbing a second round point guard would immediately help them. They could simply draft Shane Larkin or Dennis Schroeder if either falls to them, but there's likely more value in trying to maneuver into the second round in order to get two players out of this draft. While Boston doesn't have a second rounder right now, working out guys like Jackson, Kabongo, Siva, and Pressey indicates that they're certainly entertaining the idea of acquiring one. Whether or not they get one and how they go about doing it may not be decided until draft day itself.

Continue to follow CelticsLife in the coming weeks as we'll be running a "Second Round Steals" feature, profiling potential fits for the Celtics should they move into the second round.