Markelle Fultz has had multiple conversations with Danny Ainge since the draft combine in early May.

Fultz hopes to be selected first overall by the Boston Celtics.

"I've talked to Danny a few times, and they want to get me to come out there for a visit," Fultz told ESPN. "They just want to get a chance to know me better as a person."

"I want to be the No. 1 pick really bad," Fultz added. "It's been a dream of mine since I was a little kid, and I feel like I would fit well in Boston."

Fultz has yet to decide when he will formally visit the Celtics.

Fultz said he has never been to Boston, but he has watched the Celtics closely through their postseason run that ended last week in the Eastern Conference finals.

"I don't know a ton about the city," Fultz said. "I know the tradition the franchise has, and that the fans are crazy."

Host Danny Leroux (@DannyLeroux) previews the NBA Draft and offseason of the three winners of the draft lottery.

He discusses the Celtics with Jared Weiss of CLNS Media and CelticsBlog (@JaredWeissNBA); the Lakers with Darius Soriano of Forum Blue and Gold (@forumbluegold – 40:00); and the Sixers with Derek Bodner (@DerekBodnerNBA – 1:18:04).

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The Golden State Warriors were close to trading for Kevin Garnett in 2007 before the Minnesota Timberwolves eventually dealt him to the Boston Celtics. The Warriors were coming off a first round upset of the Dallas Mavericks and were one of the NBA's most compelling teams.

"After the playoff series with Utah, we had a nice group but we were trying to figure out a way to bridge the gap," said Chris Mullin. "We had a deal. Kevin Garnett was getting ready to move and I think he was being very selective. But at one point, he liked our situation.

"The exact deal was probably going to be more Minnesota's choice. We had Monta (Ellis), Andris (Biedrins), the pick itself, Jason (Richardson), Baron (Davis). We felt whatever combination they took, we had enough.

"It got really, really close, but it was vetoed.

"For us, it was more of a way to keep that success going than be a one hit wonder."

Chris Cohan and Robert Rowell vetoed the Warriors' trade for Garnett for financial reasons.

"At that time financially, they weren't willing to go there," said Mullin.

The Warriors won 48 games during the next seasons but missed out on the playoffs. Davis signed with the Los Angeles Clippers in the 2009 offseason to make the We Believe team short lived. 

Isaiah Thomas is eligible for a contract extension with the Boston Celtics this offseason, but he's okay waiting for free agency if he can help the team improve their roster.

Thomas is set to enter the final year of a four-year, $27 million contract he signed with the Phoenix Suns in 2014.

Thomas is scheduled to make just $6.3 million during the 17-18 season, be a salary less than what the Celtics will pay the No. 1 overall pick ($7 million at 120 percent of the rookie scale).

Thomas has been active in recruiting talent to the Celtics.

"We need the best possible player that's gonna help us win, and I'm with that," Thomas said. "Anything Danny and this organization need me to do to help bring even more talent to this city, I'm all for that. I want to win a championship and being so close to getting to the Finals, that makes you want it that much more.

In the past, Thomas has said the Celtics need to "bring out the Brink's truck" to re-sign him.

The Boston Celtics reached the Eastern Conference Finals this season while not sacrificing any future assets, but Danny Ainge acknowledged the team needs improvement.

“I don’t know what ‘level’ that means,” he said. “I feel like wins are deceiving sometimes. I think that the fact that we were one of three teams still left playing was something to be proud of, but it’s not necessarily where we really are.

“I think sometimes teams make false assumptions of their team based on things like that. I think that our team is not that much different than a lot of our competition in the East. I think we had a good year in spite of some injuries, you know, with [Al] Horford going down early and Isaiah [Thomas] missing a short time and Avery [Bradley] missing 22 games there in a stretch. We had to overcome some injuries, and it was good because our depth got a chance to play. Everybody on our roster got a chance to prove their worth.

“But I feel like it doesn’t really matter what we’ve accomplished. If we’d lost Game 7 against the Wizards, I don’t feel any different than if we’re where we are today. I know that we’re good. I know that we’re not great. I know that we still have more to do, and, you know, that next step is by far the hardest.”

The Celtics were eliminated by the Cleveland Cavaliers in five games.

“This is what’s difficult about our business that I think sometimes... you know, I don’t think I knew this even when I was a player and maybe even when I coached as much as I do now,” Ainge said. “As I look around the league, I think sometimes the mistakes that are made are when you’re just that little bit, just that one piece away and you can’t get that piece.

“Just because you’re one piece away doesn’t mean you can get it. And if you force yourself to get it, and if you force a deal or force yourself to get the second best available or the third or fourth best available player at that position that you need, then it might not make you that much better or make you still not good enough, and you’re stuck. So, yeah, we’re not that far away, but we’re still a ways away. We still know we need to get better. Everybody in our organization knows we need to get better. We need to add.”

While the Celtics own the top overall pick and have a good core, they could make major changes this offseason.

“Time will tell on that, but, yeah, there is a potential for there to be some significant change,” said Ainge. “But maybe less change. Maybe more change; maybe not. A lot will be dependent on what we’re able to pull off in the draft and in deals leading up to free agency and then what happens in free agency. There’s just so much unknown right now. Right now it’s all talk and pipe dreams and planning. But there’s no certainty. It’s an exciting time for us, and it’s a very busy time for us.”

Isaiah Thomas says he must wait until the swelling subsides in his injured right hip before determining his rehabilitation plan but noted that surgery is not currently the top option.

"[Surgery is] not the No. 1 option right now, but it could be once the swelling goes down," Thomas said Friday while addressing reporters at Boston's exit interviews. "They want to let [the swelling] die down a little bit then take another MRI once everything is down and it's back to normal. We'll go from there. Hopefully I don't have to have surgery, but I know that is an option."

Thomas said the Celtics are committed to putting him on the best path to long-term health. Thomas will be a free agent in 2018.

"I've gotta do what's best for me in the long run, what's best for my body. As [coach] Brad [Stevens] continues to say each and every day, it's how you're healthiest for the long run. Even [Celtics president of basketball operations] Danny [Ainge] and those guys say that, so that says a lot about who they are as people.

"Most importantly, they care about my health, not just being a basketball player. So the Celtics are definitely behind me in this tough situation, but I mean, nobody's going to feel sorry for me. I just have to keep going and figure out what I've gotta do to come back at the highest level possible."

Danny Ainge has confirmed that Lonzo Ball will not work out for the Boston Celtics despite the team owning the first overall pick.

With the Los Angeles Lakers selecting second overall, Ball hopes to be picked by his hometown team.

"We don't deal with [Ball's camp] all that much," said Ainge. "They didn't show up at the combine, which is very common -- many of the top 10 or 15 players don't show up for the [NBA's] combine. ... We just tried to get him in for a workout and they politely said no."

The Celtics are widely expected to select Markelle Fultz with the first overall pick if they keep it.

Isaiah Thomas has met with one specialist regarding the right hip injury that has sidelined him for the rest of the playoffs. Thomas will gather one or two more opinions before deciding whether to have surgery.

“He’s still obviously really sore,” Brad Stevens said. “The last [doctor] said that some of the inflammation that he has has to go down before they can make the final call.”

Thomas suffered the injury on March 15th and aggravated it several times before he was diagnosed with a labral tear after Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals.

Thomas is one season away from free agency.

Isaiah Thomas will miss the remainder of the postseason after aggravating a right hip injury during Friday's Game 2 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Celtics announced Saturday that Thomas suffered a "re-aggravation of a right femoral-acetabular impingement with labral tear" during Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals.

The Celtics trail Cleveland 2-0 heading into Game 3. 

“Isaiah has worked tirelessly to manage this injury since it first occurred,” said Celtics Chief Medical Officer Dr. Brian McKeon. “The swelling increased during the first two games against Cleveland, and in order to avoid more significant long-term damage to his hip, we could no longer allow him to continue.”

Isaiah Thomas missed the entire second half of Game 2 with a right hip strain.

Thomas played 17 minutes in the first half and didn't score a single field goal on six attempts.

“I think he's going to be reevaluated tomorrow, “ said Stevens, “and ‘we'll see’ is what I was told. I don't know anything further to that. I don't know if somebody out of our PR group will communicate that tomorrow or early Sunday, whatever the determination is.”

According to Stevens, Thomas has been battling the injury for a while.

“He's had a nagging hip injury,” said Stevens. “He aggravated it pretty significantly on Friday in Washington Game 6, went through a bunch of different testing on Saturday and Sunday, was able to play Monday, hasn't felt great either of the two days. But today I thought he looked much different in the first half. When we went back to the locker room, our training staff and doctors got with him. He was pretty despondent not to be able to play. I mean, that guy is a tough guy, and he plays through a lot. For him to have to sit is really hard.”