Miami basketball guard Bruce Brown gets second workout from Celtics

Sophomore guard Bruce Brown who left the Miami basketball program after two seasons had a second workout with the Boston Celtics on Wednesday according to the Boston Globe’s Adam Himmelsbach.

Brown played his first two seasons of high school basketball about 20 miles north of the TD Garden in Wakefield, Massachusetts, a suburb of Boston. He transferred to Vermont Academy for his final two years before joining the Miami basketball program.

Brown is an older Sophomore. He will turn 22 in August. That is the age of most Seniors. The poise and leadership abilities he posses on and off the court show. Brown led the Miami basketball team in rebounds and assists last season.

Miami was a preseason top 15 team for the 2017-18 season. The Hurricanes never reached that level once the calendar changed to the new year.

Freshman Lonnie Walker who is expected to be selected between 10th and 20th in Thursday night’s draft was recovering from a torn MCL during the first half of last season. Brown missed the last 13 games with after foot surgery.

Brown was projected to be a lottery pick in this year’s draft before this season began. His foot injury and struggles on the offensive end thwarted that. Brown is now expected to be selected between 20th and the middle of the second round.

Bringing Brown in for a second workout indicates the Celtics are thinking extensively of drafting him. Boston picks 27th in the first round. That fits perfectly with where he is being projected to be selected.

Brown’s shooting percentages went down across the board from his Freshman to his Sophomore year. He shot 45.9 percent from the floor, 34.7 percent on three-point attempts and 74.4 percent from the free throw line as a Freshman. Brown’s numbers dropped to 41.5 percent from the floor, 26.7 percent on threes and 61.5 from the line as a Sophomore.

Related Story: Which NBA teams has and will Brown workout for?

Brown is the perfect player for Celtics Head Coach Brad Stevens‘ system. He is reminiscent of former UConn Head Coach Jim Calhoun as the tough, blue-collar Northeasterner. Brown’s college coach Jim Larranaga also knows a thing or two about New Englanders. He played collegiately at Providence.

The Celtics could lose guard Marcus Smart in free agency this summer. Brown would be a perfect addition to what is mostly a young, up and coming team.

A season after winning the Atlantic Division the Celtics finished second in the division to the Toronto Raptors this season. After also earning the Eastern Conference’s top seed in 2017 the Celtics were the second seed to the Raptors this year.

NBA.Com did a great job analyzing Brown’s game and how it will fit in in the NBA. They broke down Brown’s play tangibly and what the metrics show.

Chart courtesy NBA.Com.

Brown is going to have to improve offensively and his shooting to become a good NBA player. He was slightly better than average running the Miami offense in the 19 games he played last season.

Next: Is Lonnie Walker one of most overrated players in NBA Draft?

Although Brown averaged four assists per game last season he is not the prototypical point guard. If Brown gets drafted by Boston he would only be counted on at the point for limited minutes per game. Kyrie Irving will be with the Celtics for the foreseeable future.