According to HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto, the Boston Celtics are bringing in Ukranian big man Dmytro Skapintsev on an Exhibit-10 training camp deal. The Celtics were at 20 players on their roster after waiving Jordan Schakel a few days ago.
The center stands at 7’1 and was born in Ukraine before going to college at California State Northridge. Skapintsev has one of the longest wingspans recorded according to DraftExpress, measuring at 7’6.25.
Skapintsev spent time with the New York Knicks last year, but only appeared in two games. He was predominantly on the Westchester Knicks, New York’s G-League team. The Ukrainian played in Westchester for the last two seasons.
Last season, he played in 25 games in the regular season for the Westchester Knicks averaging 12.1 points, 8 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 1.6 blocks per game. Skapintsev shot 53.5% from the field which is significantly down from the season prior where he shot 60.8% albeit on four attempts less per game.
An improvement in his game was his three-point shooting. In his first season with Westchester, he shot 14% from deep on 0.8 attempts per game. In today’s game, centers need to be able to stretch the floor and he clearly worked on it last offseason as he shot 30% from beyond the arc while attempting 2.4 threes per game.
The Celtics are gearing up for their preseason tour to Abu Dhabi. Boston will face the Denver Nuggets twice in Abu Dhabi on Friday, October 4 and Sunday, October 6.
It’s hard to imagine Skapintsev making the final roster, but a training camp deal is great for both parties if he impresses. If he does well, he’ll be a name that Brad Stevens or the Maine Celtics will look towards in the future if needed. The three favorites for the two-way deals entering training camp are JD Davison, Drew Peterson, and 2024 second round draft pick Anton Watson.
