Celtics go back to high school

The good fortune continued in the second round, when Boston selected Providence forward Ryan Gomes and University of Louisiana-Lafayette point guard Orien Greene. Ainge thought the Celtics could not have ''drawn it up any better, as far as getting lucky." Ainge projected Gomes as a first-round selection, and believed Greene underachieved in college because of injuries. As a result, the Celtics were as enthused as they were last year at this time.

''We're very excited about our pick here at 18," said Ainge. ''I'm sure a lot of teams say this kind of stuff. We had [Green] ranked way up in this draft. We thought he was going sixth to Portland. We found out in the last couple days, because he didn't work out in Portland, that they might take [Martell] Webster instead. We'd been doing a little research and thinking, 'This guy may not have a home.' But we thought, 'Somebody will definitely take him.' So, I guess, we're the lucky team that got to take him.

''We think he's got a tremendous upside. This kid can shoot and he can fly. On the downside, he's 19 and he's not ready to win in the NBA. I'd be surprised if he beat out our young guards in Delonte [West] and Tony [Allen] and obviously Paul [Pierce] and Ricky [Davis]. He's just another piece for the future."

Despite the unexpected drop, Green's agent, Andrew Vye was pleased to see his client land with the Celtics.

''With a quality basketball team set up to help young players in the transition process, if we were going to fall, we couldn't have fallen to a better place," said Vye. ''A lot of people will realize they made a mistake."

Green joins a Boston squad that grows younger with each passing year as Ainge works to build with talent and athleticism. As the second consecutive player the Celtics have drafted straight from high school, Green joins Al Jefferson (No. 15 in 2004) on a short, but intriguing list. And for the third consecutive year, the Celtics added a highly regarded prep player, with Kendrick Perkins having come on board in 2003. Since Boston will start training camp with seven players 23 or under, Ainge will rely on trades and free agency to add experience to the roster.