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Some of the guys I'm most interested in for our 1st round pick this year are Chalmers, Ibaka, Giddens, and Walker. DraftExpress did an interview with Walker where he talks about his conditioning, returning to school if not picked in the first round and his favorite players in the NBA. Worth a read:

DraftExpress: Favorite basketball player?

Bill Walker: That

I've been amazed by him since he was recruited. He fell off a bit but with Beasley last year he started to get some recognition again. He is probably the best athlete in this draft. Could be the sleeper cause I can't believe many mocks have him in the 2nd. I think maybe as pre-draft camps begin, his stock would rise.

Bill Walker as the air-apparent to Pierce? Being mentored by one of his 2 favorite players in Celtic green?

Sign me up.

I'd love him in green. I just think we'd have to move up a bit, around 23-25

Problem with Bill Walker is that he's the guy projected that EVERYONE thinks is too low. Those guys always just end up getting picked higher.

Kinda like Rodney Stuckey. Anyone who watched college basketball out west knew he was going to be a stud, and that the bottom of the first rd where he was projected was absurd. So what happened? He got drafted where he belonged, around pick 10-15.

Idk currently Brandon Rush is projected to go 25, so I can see Walker going anywhere from 26-35. I don't think anyone would pick him with Rush still on the board. Now maybe Rush and Walker both jump way up in the draft and passes some of the lesser-knowns.

I'd be happy if he fell to 30 and we picked him, but I see him going quite a bit higher after the workouts as well.

My hope is to get one of these 3: Brandon Rush, Bill Walker or Ty Lawson.

I think getting one of those 3 is very doable. But we really need a center
I hold out hope that somehow Danny finds away to get DeAndre Jordan. Maybe the knicks sell their pick?

If we could add Walker, Rush, or Chris Douglas Roberts that would be unreal. Douglas Roberts and Rush are top 20 prospects in this draft and Bill Walker right now is the most underrated player in the draft. Unfortunately the odds are about 10% that one of these three players fall to our spot. Just because you see sites like Nbadraft.net and Draftexpress having Walker going in the early to mid second round doesn't mean that NBA teams feel the same way about him. ESPN's Chad Ford is usually the best source for how the league feels about players and he currently has Walker 23 on his big board. Foprd consults with NBA frontoffice people when making his board. Walker has been rising up draft boards with his workouts in Chicago and once NBA teams start working him out he will probably end up in the 20 - 25 range.

Joey Dorsey is a guy that we should definitely look at for our pick. He is a lock to be around the NBA for atleast 10 years. He is already 24 yrs old and he is a great defender, rebounder, and shot blocker as well as having great athleticism and strength.

it would be great if the celtics could snag him
i think he is the deal

I agree 100% with taking this kid if he falls to us. This is one of my favorite players in the draft. I was going to start a tread two weeks ago on Bill Walker but was afraid of getting tourched due to the playoffs. If Walker or Lawson would to fall into our laps then we can't pass that up even if we really need a center.

LarryBrdismyDad wrote:
Joey Dorsey is a guy that we should definitely look at for our pick. He is a lock to be around the NBA for atleast 10 years. He is already 24 yrs old and he is a great defender, rebounder, and shot blocker as well as having great athleticism and strength.

We don't really have playing time for another undersized PF - Powe and Davis have that time monopolized.

If we don't take a player over 6'9", we should just take a guard/SF.

I've been hoping for Bill Walker as well.

He definately seems like an Ainge type of pick: A wicked athletic, skilled player who was held in high regard until he ran into some injuries (ala Powe), and a guy who was stuck playing in the shadow of one of his teammates (ala Pruitt). A low risk/high reward pick.

Do we have any 2nd picks this year or did we use them all in The Trades? I'd be alright with us packaging a second rounder and/or cash to move up to grab him if necessary.

Also, I absolutely love that he's a Paul Pierce fan. That tells me he actually knows the game of basketball. Most college kids would just say LeBron and Kobe. Pierce's game usually flies under the radar.

I like what I hear about Walker, but as I've mentioned in other threads I'm all about Brandon Rush. I mean, if I had the #2 or #3 pick in the draft and couldn't trade it, I'd consider taking Brandon Rush there. No, I don't follow college ball all that closely and do not have nearly as much knowledge of certain prospects as others on this board....but in fairness to myself I don't claim to be confident about this stuff when I'm not, and I do tend to have decent judgement when it comes to this stuff. I haven't felt nearly as strongly about a prospective draft pick since I wanted Pitino to draft Tracy McGrady in the late 90s

Walker looks like he'd be a great pick for the Celtics. He's like Tony Allen only a better shooter. I don't think he'll last till thirty but I'd be game for trading Baby and thirty to get him

I see Walker in the 2nd round in most mock drafts, so I'm not considering him as a guy being compared to players like Rush by teams picking in the mid to late first. Of course, he might be moving up in the draft and has a chance to show his shot and conditioning in workouts. If he does move up, that means another player slips to us.

He just looks like a guy who can come in ready to play with energy and be that guy to spell Pierce and Allen for a few minutes at a time. Walker could be replacement for TA.

To be honest, I have no idea why everyone is projecting him in the second round. He would be an ideal fit for the Celtics. He's used to deferring and playing second fiddle to Beasley, so he'll respect his situation with the C's. He is very athletic and has had a major knee injury, but apparently it's healed well. He could very well develop into a similar Pierce. He can drive and post guys up well for his size. He's about average defensively and will need work there.

Overall, he'll probably be taken somewhere from 18-25. He'll probably rise in a bit of time once workouts roll around.

Link: http://www.draftexpress.com/article/Cro ... cago-2893/

More on Walker, Roberts in workouts...

Video of him talking with Chad Ford. He looks pretty svelt; might end up going earlier than projected:

http://sports.espn.go.com/broadband/vid ... Id=2459792