By: Rich Levine
CSNNE.com
LOS ANGELESBack in the summer of 2001, the Celtics had three first round picks.
With the No. 10 pick, they chose Arkansas' Joe Johnson. With No. 11, a swing man out of Okaloosa-Walton Community College named Kedrick Brown. At No. 22, it was North Carolina's Joe Forte.
At the time, the trio were supposed to be a huge part of Boston's future. But now?
Well, you know about Johnson. He was traded to the Suns halfway through his rookie season before moving to Atlanta, where he's now a five-time All Star.
But Brown and Forte? Well, Johnson's not sure.
"Oh man," Johnson said when asked about his former teammates. "I havent spoken to those guys in years. I was asking Lester Conner, one of our assistant coaches in Atlanta, if he had talked to them and he hadn't either. Im curious to know what those guys are up to."
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After a little research, we can report that Brown last played in the NBA with Philly in 2005, and now plays in Turkey for Bornova Belediye. Forte was out of the league in 2003 after only 25 games. In January 2010 he was playing for Nuova Pallacanestro Pavia, an Italian team.
As for Johnson's time with the Celtics, a lot has happened since, but he still appreciates the team for bring him into the league.
"They gave me the opportunity to play at the highest level of basketball and I cant do anything but thank them for that."
Rich can be reached at rlevine@comcastsportsnet.com. Follow Rich on Twitter at http:twitter.comrlevine33