Do the Boston Celtics have their sights set on a first round point guard?

It’s smokescreen season, folks.

Just over a week from the NBA Draft and one OKC win away from a new champion, the offseason has been heating up for the league’s 28 non-contending teams. The Celtics have been particularly shrouded in offseason buzz for the multiple trade avenues they could explore. Most recently, the buzz has been less about the players on the move and more about the players they may want to draft.

A recent report from Dallas-based reporter Grant Afseth paints the Celtics as a team looking to move up in this year’s draft, particularly angling for a point guard.

It’s important to note that the Celtics have not held many official pre-draft workouts with point guard prospects at this time. According to HoopsHype’s visit tracker, Boston has worked out three point guard prospects at this stage in the process and one of those players is Milos Uzan, who has already decided to return to college to play for the Houston Cougars.

It’s not like that’s the end-all, conversation-closing stamp on what could ultimately be just your classic draft smokescreen, but it does indicate that anyone’s on the table if the Celtics do go down the direction of a new floor general.

This year’s crop of rookie guards is top-heavy, mostly centered around likely No. 2 pick Dylan Harper and Baylor’s VJ Edgecombe, but as far as true floor general/lead guard prospects go, it can appear a bit thin in the lottery.

Oklahoma guard Jeremiah Fears will still be just 18 years old when his name is called on draft night, and what we’ve seen in his 34 college games is a high-upside scoring guard with a growing bag of tricks to create his own shot.

Fears has a graceful ballhandling style, akin to modern score-first shotmakers like Kemba Walker or Jordan Poole, and that scoring is the predominant reason a team in the lottery will look to take a chance on the Sooners one-and-done despite inconsistent 3-point shooting and a high turnover rate.

Another lottery candidate is fellow one-and-done Kasparas Jakucionis, a Lithuanian prospect that spent time on Barcelona’s reserve team before a move to Illinois. At 6-foot-6, Jakucionis is a capable pick-and-roll ballhandler with room to grow as a playmaker, but certainly has plenty of film to show he can make the right reads and toss dimes with a flourish. He’s an excellent paint attacker, showcasing speed, strength and craftiness to finish at the rim.

A package of picks No. 28 and 32 can only move Boston up so far, so those options might seem out of reach unless a deal surrounding Sam Hauser or Jrue Holiday included a change of hands in draft capital.

A team in the 20s however may be a bit more receptive to that type of swap. Miami (20th overall), Atlanta (22nd) or Orlando (25th) could engage in that type of package, offering Boston a slightly better chance at grabbing a high-upside guard like BYU’s Egor Demin or Saint-Quentin guard Nolan Traore.

Demin, a 6-foot-9 point forward that left after one year in college like Jakucionas and Fears, flashed major potential in the NCAA Tournament, displaying passing flair, rim finishing ability and high-level athleticism. The 19-year-old has the framework of a lottery prospect, but what’s holding him back is a subpar shooting resume (35% in the mid-range, 27% 3P, 69.5% from the line) and questionable shot selection.

Demin’s intriguing blend of size and play initiating makes him an interesting developmental prospect, but it seems unlikely for Boston to target a non-shooting threat from the outside that may take some time before he’s ready for a substantial NBA role.

French prospect Nolan Traore would be a more traditional option than Demin that they’d consider in the middle of the first round. Running the point at Saint-Quentin, the fact that he was a primary ballhandler at 18 years old for a team at the highest level of French basketball is in itself an eye-catching logline for any draft hopeful, but Traore simply looked like he belonged at that level when you watch him play.

Traore has an elite trait, and it’s his speed with the ball in his hands. The guy just leaves people in the dust with his straight line acceleration. All he needs is a simple jab here, a quick crossover there, and he’s gone. Not many defenders could keep up with him.

It’s not all positives though. The young Traore does not have a consistent jump shot at this point, and on defense, he has a difficult time working around screens, often getting thrown out of the action.

Even if Boston stands pat at 28, I don’t think it’s out of the question to see them still target a guard. Prospects that have been mentioned frequently in the back of first round discussions like Ben Saraf (Ratiopharm Ulm), Walter Clayton Jr. (Florida) and Kam Jones (Marquette) all present good value at 28.

Walter would arguably be the most popular pick of the bunch after stealing the show during Florida’s run to the NCAA Championship. At 6’3”, Clayton’s a bit undersized, but he showcased unlimited shooting range and the confidence to score from any spot against any matchup.

There’s so much purpose to what Clayton does with the ball in his hands. He’s always looking to score, but he has an understanding of the gravity he possesses and has the vision to move the ball into space because of that gravity. Rarely does it feel like Clayton is out of ideas, and when he does struggle to find an avenue to score, he’s willing to pass it out of the situation and re-route as an off-ball threat.

The fact that he’s an off and on-ball shooter really makes it an easier sell on his scoring ability. Think Anfernee Simons-level creation as a ceiling, and you have a good idea of how influential Clayton can be on the floor.

There are identifiable concern areas, particularly in his overly-aggressive point-of-attack defense, but the fact that he’s not so heavily reliant on self-creation and works hard in the non-scoring areas shows a player with high potential for a late first-round pick.

Saraf presents a straightforward point guard with room to grow as a scorer.

Saraf has proven show-running traits with the ball in his hands. He has good size, a patient style and the vision to really keep a defense on its toes, spraying passes all across the floor. As a scorer, Saraf is a bit of a mixed bag. He’s got the tools and handling ability to create for himself on the drive, but that doesn’t extend to his jumper, which in itself is a major weakness to his game.

Defensively, he’s capable, boasting good off-ball instincts, quick hands and the frame to handle his own when a guard tries to drive through him. Will he ever be a true plus on this end? Likely not, but he does his job adequately.

Then there’s Marquette’s Kam Jones, a four-year college standout with 137 games under his belt. Most frequently mocked in the early parts of the second round, Jones lacks serious explosiveness, yet has been a proven bucket since the day he stepped foot on Marquette’s campus.

He’s been an efficient double-digit scorer and reliable shooter (career 37% on 3-pointers) the last three seasons, while stepping into a larger ballhandling role as a senior after the departure of Tyler Kolek. With more responsibility, Jones showcased serious playmaking upside as a traditional pick-and-roll point guard, though his services are best suited to a score-first shooting guard that can combo between running offense and playing off the ball.

Jones’ strong, bulky frame is noticeable in his on-ball defense. He doesn’t get driven through very often and does well defending with the body without fouling. He anticipates passes defending off-ball, and was often used as a roaming free safety defender that could survive bigger matchups in a pinch. At 28 or 32, Jones’ crafty scoring ability and balanced game could give Boston a prospect that’s ready for minutes in Year 1.

What’s really been great about this particular draft process is how open it is for the Celtics. The expectation, for the first time in a long time, is that the Celtics intend, and frankly need, to add to their cost-controlled prospect pool. Even if Joe Mazzulla doesn’t love rookies, there are minutes up for grabs across all position groups. Whoever hears their name called has a serious chance to prove their worth out of the gate.

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If that first round pick ends up being a guard prospect, who do you like? Comment below and let us know.