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The Boston Celtics have pretty much found their center of the future in Neemias Queta if they want him. He was a project, but by developing him, he’s become a double-double and shot-blocking machine.
However, with Nikola Vuvecic getting up there in age and his contract running out after this season, they’ll need a new guy to back Queta up. FanSided’s Eamon Cassels proposes that the Celtics keep an eye on Duke Blue Devils sophomore center Patrick Ngongba II, who has the profile of being a good, modern center.
“I'm not sure what I'm missing with Patrick Ngongba. Defensively, he is highly versatile, while being able to protect the rim at a high rate. Impressively, per CBB Analytics, he ranks in the 99th percentile for Defensive RAPM. Offensively, he is an efficient lob threat with solid polish as both a scorer and passer. Simply put, he's everything you'd want from a modern big man. Nevertheless, in most mock drafts, he's projected to be a mid-to-late first-round pick…In any event, the Celtics' biggest need is arguably big man depth. Neemias Queta has emerged as a starting-level center, but it's unclear if Nikola Vučević has a future in Beantown. And frankly, I can't think of a better prospect to fill this void than Ngongba,” Cassels wrote.
This season for Duke, Ngongba averaged 10.2 points, 5.8 rebounds, two assists, and 1.1 blocks in 21.9 minutes per game. This was a huge step up from his freshman year, as he basically over-doubled his stats after seeing an increase of 10 minutes in playing time.
Ngongba is pretty much another Queta. A long, athletic, shot-blocking lob threat that can do a little playmaking on the side. If he has the time to develop behind Queta, he’d be an immense threat on the court for the Celtics.
Hopefully, Ngongba falls to Boston, they make sure to snatch him up, and work their magic into making him another star in the NBA.
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