NBA Season Preview Series
The Boston Celtics
Off-Season Overview
Key Additions- Al Horford (FA), Gerald Green (FA) Jaylen Brown (#3), John Holland (FA)
Key Losses- Evan Turner (Por), Jared Sullinger (Tor)
Summer Standout- Terry Rozier and Jordan Mickey
Overall, the Celtics had a good off-season. Many saw this as the summer where they could make the leap from a playoff team, to the a fringe contender. This was the goal for Danny Ainge this summer, and to his credit, he got close to landing a top player in this league with Kevin Durant. The Celtics had a good draft stealing PG Demitrius Jackson (#45) in the second round, while securing Jaylen Brown with the third pick. I thought they're use of the 16th pick was a reach with Guerschon Yabusele, but with 6 picks in the draft and an already deep roster, there was zero way Danny could have made NBA ready picks with all of them.
Losing Evan Turner will be the only blow this team has to deal with. He was versatile, and effective in his minutes last year, while embodying what that team was about... Hustle and heart. Celtics fans should be content with Jared Sullinger departing. He was undersized for his position and could not protect the rim. His strengths overlapped with all the other bigs on that roster so he became expendable.
Many did not like the Jaylen Brown pick back in June. But i LOVE what he can offer this team both right away, and in the future. This team plays fast under Brad Stevens, and his athleticism combined with his size offer the C's something they have not had at the wing in a while. If he develops a jump shot he could turn into a very good player, but he should contribute right away regardless. Helping Jaylen at the wing is Gerald Green who has decided to return to the team that drafted him. He should also contribute solid minutes off the bench with his offensive capabilities due to his explosiveness which will help this team on the break.
And finally... AL HORFORD. The Celtics finally have made a free agent signing that nets them a top tier player in the league. The Celtics and Horford should benefit from this move. Brad Stevens should get him looks and he should help the C's at least progress past the first round making this team better than last year's version.
Projected Starting 5
Pg- Isaiah Thomas
Sg- Avery Bradley
SF- Jae Crowder
PF- Kelly Olynyk
C- Al Horford
Key Bench Players
G- Marcus Smart
C- Amir Johnson
F- Jaylen Brown
G- Terry Rozier
F- Jordan Mickey
Analysis & Prediction
Well coached, energetic, full of heart. These are the traits that have lead the Celtics to their unprecedented levels of success these past two years under Brad Stevens. Look for these traits to stay with this team as they continue to add real talent to this team, making them grow as a unit even more. This team will make the playoffs, its just about where in the seeding they will land. Regardless, Al Horford puts them in a position where the position of weakness is filled and they can now progress into the second round or beyond. Isaiah Thomas will continue this team offensively and spiritually while Avery Bradley shows why he is the top perimeter defender in the league.
*For a prediction wait for the full NBA prediction during our series where we will display our conference standing predictions, and playoff outcome predictions.*
