"Best shooter in the draft."
That's what Jay Bilas said on ESPN about Aaron Nesmith, whom the Celtics drafted 14th overall Wednesday night, and it's what many others seem to believe as well.
There's a good reason for that. Nesmith knocked down a ridiculous 52.2% of his threes on 8.2 attempts per game in 14 games for Vanderbilt last season before suffering a season-ending foot injury.
Speaking to the media via Zoom Wednesday night, Nesmith didn't shy away from the praise for his shooting ability.
"Absolute sniper," Nesmith said when asked to describe his game.
Nesmith went on to explain how he thinks he can help the Celtics' core and contribute from Day 1.
"A guy who's going to make life easier for the creators on the offense -- Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Kemba Walker," Nesmith said. "A guy who's always going to be there, work hard, earn his stripes."
While Nesmith is known as a scorer, some scouting reports suggest his defensive game could still use some work. The 6-foot-6 wing made it clear that he plans to work just as hard at that end of the floor.
"Do it on both sides of the floor," Nesmith said. "I want to be great. I want to be the best player I can be, and that includes defense. So I'm going to give it my all and the best effort I have to that side of the floor, use my size, length and athleticism, be able to guard multiple positions."
The Celtics added another player who can shoot with their second first-round pick in Oregon point guard Payton Pritchard (41.5% on threes last season), and coach Brad Stevens said both Nesmith and Pritchard will get a chance to compete for playing time and contribute "sooner rather than later."