With Brad Stevens at the coaching helm, the Celtics have bright days ahead.
Despite the likelihood that another losing season is on the horizon, there are plenty of reasons to be optimistic about the Celtics’ future.
Coaching—25/25
The soon to be 38-year old Brad Stevens helped the Celtics get out to a 12-14 start in 2013-14, which was probably more than management wanted from him in his first year coaching the team. Stevens groomed Jordan Crawford into a somewhat capable point guard, and had they not traded him right before Rondo returned it’s possible they would’ve won enough games to make the playoffs in the East.
Expect Stevens to have his work cut out for him again in 2014-15, as the Celtics are a young team in rebuilding mode, but if Rondo is healthy for the entire season (and isn’t traded) it’s not insane to think the Celtics could win 30-35 games. Regardless of how they fare in terms of their record, all signs point to Steven being the Celtics’ coach for the foreseeable future, and deservedly so.
Free Agency & Trades—20/25
It’s possible the Celtics overspent on Avery Bradley; but he’s an extremely hardworking player who has improved every year he’s been in the league thus far, and he certainly has the potential to be worth every penny of the four-year, $32 million deal he signed this summer.
Sign-and-trading Kris Humphries for a conditional second round pick and a trade exception was a solid swing, but their real home run was hit in the deal involving Cleveland and Brooklyn, during which they turned a conditional 2015 second round pick (ONLY good for 2015, and it’s top-55 protected) and the rights to Ilkan Karaman and Edin Bavcic into the Cavs’ 2016 first-round pick (top-10 protected). This helped the Cavs land LeBron, but if the Celtics hadn’t stepped up, someone else (cough, Hinkie) would’ve.
On the other hand, they did sign Evan Turner, which was a puzzling move to say the least. Former coach Brett Brown lauded Turner for his work ethic, so it’s possible he hasn’t reached his peak yet. However, he spent previous summers working with shot doctors trying to develop reliable technique and confidence, and it’s yet to translate. Turner’s not an old dog yet (turns 26 in October), but it won’t be that surprising if he’s unable to learn new tricks. If he were able to improve his shot, it would help his ability to play off the ball tremendously and make him an infinitely more valuable player, as he currently really needs the ball in his hands to be effective. Coach Stevens should coax him into making his main commitment be on the defensive end, though. Turner is at best an average athlete by NBA standards, but he has the size and strength (6-7, 220 lbs.) to be a decent defender if he makes it his top priority.
Draft—20/25
The Celtics said early that they were locked in and ready to take Aaron Gordon if he were available. Whether that was true or not we’ll never know since Orlando picked him right before Boston, but the C’s should be pleased with their draft selecting Marcus Smart. Smart struggled with his shot in the summer league, but he’s a big, tough guard who loves to get after it defensively.
Though early indications are that he’ll play a lot of shooting guard in his rookie year, it’s possible they view him as Rondo’s replacement, and if Rondo were traded it’s likely Smart would immediately assume the starting point guard role.
Boston also drafted James Young with the no. 17 pick overall, and while he was held out of summer league, he projects to see some solid time in his rookie year as well. He’ll have to push himself to get better defensively, but on the offensive side of the ball he has the size and skills to play both wing positions if he continues to develop.
Current Player Core—20/25
It’s unclear how many of the players under contract are part of the Celtics’ long-term plans, but they do deserve credit for their patience, especially with regard to Rondo as he enters the final year of his current deal.
The Love trade still won’t be official for another 10 days, but Rondo seems likely to become the next All-Star to be surrounded by unending trade rumors—unless he agrees to a contract extension in the very near future. Rondo turns 29 in February, and given that the Celtics missed out on Love it seems doubtful they have much hope of adding enough talent alongside Rondo to compete during the remaining window of his prime.
Gerald Wallace (two years, $20 million remaining), Jeff Green (two years, $18 million, second year is a player option), Marcus Thornton ($8.6 million expiring contract), Brandon Bass ($6.9 million expiring contract) and Joel Anthony ($3.8 million expiring contract) are almost certainly not part of Boston’s bigger picture. Turner’s deal is only for two years, and everyone else on the roster besides Bradley is still on his rookie deal (Smart, Young, Vitor Faverani, Kelly Olynyk, Tyler Zeller, Jared Sullinger) or a fully unguaranteed deal (Chris Johnson, Chris Babb, Phil Pressey).
As one can see, the Celtics’ core is very difficult to determine, but in Bradley, Smart, Young, Olynyk, and Sullinger they at least have some nice young talent—regardless of what they decide to do with their All-Star magician.
Overall Future—85/100
As discussed here, the Celtics are rolling in future draft picks thanks to Billy King and Brooklyn. They used the Nets’ pick this year on Young, and while the rules prevent teams from trading their first-round picks in consecutive years, the Celtics will take the Nets’ first-round picks in 2016 and 2018. They also have the right to swap first-round picks with Brooklyn in 2017.
The Celtics have as many unknowns as any team in the NBA entering the 2014-15 season, but this doesn’t mean it won’t be an exciting year. Rondo is pure joy to watch, and if he’s back to full health his artistry and flare alone makes basketball in Boston buzz-worthy again. If he’s traded, and it’s early enough in the season, the Celtics should challenge for the league’s worst record.
Even if they wanted to make the playoffs in 2014-15 (which they don’t want to do since they’d owe their first-round pick to Philadelphia), they’d be hard-pressed to do so in what appears to be a slightly improved Eastern Conference. Combine their cap flexibility, young talent, and surplus of future first-round picks, and Boston will be an intriguing team to follow in the next few years.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
