The Boston Celtics probably won’t be competing for a banner next year, but they can lay the groundwork for the next one
This is Boston. Any year that doesn’t end with a parade is simply not good enough. There’s no silver lining to a season of Jayson Tatum’s prime years lost due to injury.
However, now that we’ve been played that hand, it only makes sense to get as much value out of the upcoming season as we can. In fact, if you open up your mind to it, you can really get a lot out of a year like this.
For several years, this team has been all-in on Banners-or-Bust. In particular, the recent years have featured a top-heavy and stacked roster of talent. That left precious few minutes for development projects. As recently as 2022-23, Payton Pritchard was averaging just over 13 minutes a game. Other promising young players left via trade for veterans (Robert Williams III, Aaron Nesmith).
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Now, the Celtics have a number of young players that could cut their teeth with live action next year. Baylor Scheierman, Hugo Gonzalez, Josh Minott, and Jordan Walsh to name a few. Not to mention the big man rotation that consists of a pu pu platter of prospects and unproven players (Luka Garza, Neemias Queta, Amari Williams) plus a grizzled veteran at the ripe old age of 26, Xavier Tillman.
Granted, there are no Cooper Flaggs or Victor Wembenyama’s in that group. There might not be any future Payton Pritchards or Sam Hausers either but that’s the level of contributor that the Celtics are hoping to unearth in this group. With enough bites at the proverbial apple, there’s bound to be a seed or two in there somewhere (that sounds gross, but it made sense in my mind because a seed can grow into a tree… just work with me here).
Now most teams that are focused on developing talent are somewhere in the rebuild process and can only trot out the occasional past-his-prime veteran to be the adult in the room (sorry Marcus Smart circa Washington). This Celtics team, however, features a Finals MVP in his prime, a 6th Man of the Year winner, and Derrick White (who is perfect in every way). Both Joe Mazzulla and Brad Stevens will be watching closely to see which of the young guys fits well and thrives with that core group of veterans.
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Speaking of those veterans, they will have a whole season to experiment and add to their games in a low-pressure environment (comparatively speaking). Jaylen Brown will finally know what it feels like to be The Man, and all the responsibility that comes with it. White will be a clear 2nd option with even more reason to be aggressive. Pritchard and Hauser are going to eat like me at an all-inclusive resort.
I can’t wait to see how Joe Mazzulla experiments with this roster. I could see some elements of the Pacers “random” offense incorporated. The Celtics have already been stressing cutting as a desired skill in their players. Of course, there are still enough shooters on this roster to hoist up the 3 ball plenty. How they look on defense is another story (and I’m sure Joe is excited about that challenge).
And if you need another reason to perk your ears up in the coming year, just think about rumor season and the trade deadline. Need a creator on an expiring deal? Here’s Anfernee Simons, ready to plug-and-play into any contender’s lineup. Need a shooter? Here’s Georges Niang or Sam Hauser. All we ask in return is picks or promising players on rookie contracts and keep the change.
Unless something very weird and wonderful occurs next season, we won’t be raising Banner #19. But there’s enough interest and intrigue to keep us watching and following this team. At some point next season there will be a stretch where the vision starts coming together and you’ll be able to squint and say, “imagine adding a top-5 player in the NBA to this group.” Because soon enough, that’s gonna happen.