NBA: Celtics’ face short- and long-term questions after shaky season
Celtics’ face short- and long-term questions after shaky season: Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown duo not enough as lack of depth, leadership questions remain
The Boston Celtics’ season came to a disappointing end after losing to the Brooklyn Nets in five games in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Unfortunately, for the Celtics, the team’s lack of depth, and leadership was questioned this past season. Jaylen Brown suffered a season-ending torn ligament in his left wrist after colliding with teammate Jason Tatum against the Portland Trailblazers, while Kemba Walker missed several games because of back pain and COVID-19 relations. In his fifth NBA season, Brown became a first-time All-Star and finished with career highs in points (24.7), shooting percentage (48.1%), and assists (3.4). While Walker finished the season averaging 19.3 points, and 4.9 rebounds.
Injuries were just the beginning of a horrific season for the Celtics. Without the services of their second-best player in Brown, the team lacked depth when it mattered the most. Boston’s bench was rather thin, having to play Romeo Langford, Payton Pritchard, and Robert Williams heavy minutes during the regular and postseason. Boston didn't have a single bench player who averaged more than 7.7 points per game this season. To revamp their roster and potentially contend for a championship next season, the Celtics should look to add veteran role players. With free agents like PJ Tucker, Danny Green, and Andre Iguodala available, the young core needs to be surrounded by experienced players and veteran leadership.
While the bench play was one of their biggest problems this season, the most controversy came from Brad Stevens’ leadership style. Throughout the season, multiple NBA analysts, most notably, Stephen A. Smith believed Stevens lost his locker room saying, “The two stars of your team are a 24-year-old by the name of Jaylen Brown and a 23-year-old by the name of Jayson Tatum. On the sports talk in Boston and in the papers and in the tabloids and beyond, they are talking about how these guys sort of tuned him out.” Although Stevens is a great X’s and O’s coach, his inability to make the necessary adjustments to his lineups, motivate, and inspire his team especially on defense, was put on full display this season.
Since their season ended, Stevens has stepped down from his role as head coach and will become the new president of basketball operations. He wasted no time making two major moves: hiring Ime Udoka as their next head coach and trading Walker, a 2021 first round pick, and a 2025 second round pick for Al Horford, Moses Brown, and a 2023 second-round pick. In Horford's second stint with the Celtics, he adds what the team desperately needs once again. Despite their shortcomings this season, the future seems to be bright with stars like Brown and Tatum as the cornerstones of the franchise.
However, are they good enough to win a championship? Can Tatum be the best player on a championship team? An argument can be made that the 23-year-old has already hit his ceiling. The Celtics’ have reached three of the last five conference finals, losing to the Cleveland Cavaliers twice, and to the Miami Heat a year ago. Of course, there is no shame in losing to a LeBron-led Cavaliers team. However, losing to the Heat last year seemed to cause turmoil within the organization. Boston should make a win-now move if possible, and trade Brown to acquire a superstar this offseason to pair with Tatum. An unlikely but intriguing option would be Damian Lillard.
A Lillard and Tatum duo would be lethal and could catapult the Celtics into a top-3 team in the NBA next season. Another option could be trading for Lillard's backcourt running mate, CJ McCollum. Although that idea is applaudable, it does not make sense for the team unless Brown is not included in the deal. Either way, the Celtics must make major changes to their roster this offseason because I do not believe they have enough to win a championship presently constructed. To immediately improve their roster, the Celtics should also keep an eye on free agents like DeMar DeRozan, Kawhi Leonard, Kyle Lowry, and Chris Paul, in case any of them are willing to leave their current situation.
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