Mike Zarren doesn’t yet know how Max Shulga will transition to the league, but those in the Boston Celtics front office have watched Shulga have success everywhere else.
“He’s just a winner,” the Celtics vice president of basketball operations told reporters after the 2025 NBA Draft concluded Thursday night, per NBC Sports Boston.
And because of that the Celtics added Shulga with the 57th overall pick. The VCU guard (6-foot-4, 206 pounds) technically was drafted by the Orlando Magic, but will head to Boston with the not-yet-finalized second-round trade soon to be official.
Shulga was named the Atlantic-10 Player of the Year in 2024-25. He was recognized as an All-Atlantic-10 selection during each of his two seasons at VCU. The native of Kyiv, Ukraine, averaged 15.0 points and 4.0 assists during his final college season. He shot 39.2% from long range during his college career.
“Max is a tough guy who can handle and shoot,” Zarren said. “Elite, elite toughness.”
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Zarren shared Shulga moved to Spain when he was 13 years old to play basketball. He started his college career at Utah State and he played one season with now Celtics teammate Neemias Queta.
Boston acquired the rights to Nos. 46 and 57 after they traded back with the Orlando Magic. Orlando also sent Boston two future second-round picks, ultimately granting the Green three additional seconds for No. 32 overall. The Celtics added Kentucky big man Amari Williams with the 46th overall pick.
“We’ve been watching both these guys for a long time, they had long college careers, and very, very successful players wherever they’ve been,” Zarren said of Williams and Shulga. “So we’ll see what they do at the next level, but they’re both just really successful, winning college players.”