BOSTON — The Boston Celtics plan to work out University of Connecticut forward Alex Karaban ahead of the 2026 NBA Draft, according to David Borges of CT Insider. The team holds the No. 27 overall pick in the first round and the No. 40 pick in the second round of that draft.

Karaban is ranked No. 32 on ESPN’s top 100 draft prospects list for the 2026 NBA Draft. The Celtics are seeking to bolster their big man depth heading into the 2026–27 NBA regular season, and Karaban could represent a potential target with one of their selections.

Karaban completed his collegiate career at UConn in 2026 after playing 151 games and starting 150 of them. He averaged 12.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 2.0 assists per game over his career while shooting 46.8% from the field, 37.4% from three-point range, and 84.4% from the free-throw line. He scored 1,880 career points, ranking sixth all-time in program history, and holds the UConn records for games played, starts, minutes played (4,906), and three-pointers made (292).

Karaban won NCAA championships with UConn in 2023 and 2024. The program reached three of the last four national championship games during his tenure. In the 2025–26 season, he was the only UConn player to start all 40 games and earned a spot on the All-Big East First Team. He also holds the UConn record for most career victories with 126.

UConn head coach Dan Hurley praised Karaban as one of the program’s all-time greats. "He’s one of the greatest players that’s worn the uniform. There’s players that have gone on from here and had careers in the NBA, and there’s a lot of them, but when they were in the uniform, who’s done more than this guy? Who’s done more while they wore the uniform than this guy? Because in sports it all comes down to, ‘Did you win for your organization? Did you win championships? Did you win games?’ And that’s why I think he’s one of the greatest players to put the uniform on," Hurley said in a podcast interview.

Hurley added, "This guy changed my life and the staff’s lives. The joy he has brought to the university, the fan base, his decision to come to UConn. He has helped make UConn, I think right now, probably the premier program in college basketball, having been to three out of four national championship games and having won two of them. He’s put UConn in that rarefied place in college basketball. Everyone owes everything to that guy."

Karaban grew up in Southborough, Massachusetts, roughly 30 miles west of Boston.