The Celtics Got Better This Offseason
The Celtics were a very good team last season, and while they didn’t have that many options to branch out this offseason, they could have the opportunity to get better. The Celtics had a solid draft and a decent free agency. But did these moves make the Celtics more of a contender in the East? Here’s a full breakdown of what the Celtics did this offseason.
2020 NBA Draft
The Celtics had 3 draft picks during the 2020 NBA Draft, including two in the first round. They were selecting at picks 14, 26, and 47 in the 2nd round. Here’s what they did with those 3 picks.
#14 – Aaron Nesmith
The Celtics struggled with depth and scoring off the bench, and Nesmith can help with both. Nesmith was the best shooter in this draft as he shot 52% from 3 during his junior season. Nesmith is 6-6, so he is a bit lengthy and can play at the SF position. Nesmith brings some spacing and scoring to this Celtics bench, something that they didn’t have last season. Boston was ranked #29 in the league in bench points, so adding a shooter like Nesmith really helps them.
#26 – Payton Pritchard
This was another solid pickup by Boston, although they could have done better. Pritchard averaged 20.5 points and 5.5 assists during his senior season at Oregon. He also shot 42% from 3, and has excellent range. Again, the Celtics ranked 29th in the league, and a guard like Pritchard can really help the Celtics. Pritchard is an excellent scorer even though he is a bit undersized at 6-2, 190 lb. Many people were saying that if the Celtics wanted a PG, they could have found a better option. But this one wasn’t bad at all by the Celtics.
#47 – Yam Madar
This one is more of a project pickup by the Celtics. Madar was not expected to be drafted, but the Celtics took a chance with the 19-year old Israeli guard. Madar is a down-hill type of guard who has nice handles as well. Madar is a very low-risk, high-reward type pickup for the Celtics. If this pick flops, it flops. If Madar produces anything for the Celtics in the future, this pick will be considered a win.
The Celtics did a solid job during this draft. They got some shooting and scoring off the bench, and they also got a project player for the future. The Celtics add two rookies to their limited depth, making them much less reliant on their starting unit and becoming more of a well-rounded team in the East.
2020 Free Agency
The Celtics had a couple of big free agent decisions this offseason, some decisions that could make this team much better or worse.
Losing Gordon Hayward
Hayward was solid for the Celtics last season, as he averaged 17.5 points. Hayward was a very good piece to this Celtics team, but having him was a problem for one season and one reason only. Hayward complicated the Celtics forward hierarchy, and sometimes it made it harder for guys like Tatum and Brown to get shots late. While Hayward was good, I proposed that the Celtics let him go because paying him $30 million not even to be the first option wasn’t worth it. But losing him for absolutely nothing does hurt.
Hayward went to Charlotte for $30 million per year. It was good that the Celtics let him go, but losing him for nothing does hurt a bit. But now Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown get more freedom and shots, allowing them to be even better. This move has more positives than it does have negatives. This is a solid move by the Celtics.
Signing Tristan Thompson
The Celtics struggled with big man depth last season, as Daniel Theis was their starting center for most of the year. Enes Kanter was their backup and Robert Williams was injured for most of the season. The Celtics desperately needed some depth at the center position. Myles Turner was a guy that the Celtics were rumored to be after, but they ended up settling for Tristan Thompson.
Thompson is a solid rebounder, especially offensive rebounding. While Thompson isn’t the best defender in the world, he is still decent and makes the Celtics big man group much better. Now Thompson will be starting and Theis and Robert Williams will be coming off the bench. This makes the Celtics much better.
Signing Jeff Teague/Losing Brad Wanamaker
The Celtics lost Brad Wanamaker, who was one of their best bench players from last season. Wanamaker was a solid scorer off the Celtics bench, and losing him does hurt.
But the Celtics got a good replacement with Jeff Teague. Teague is a good distributor and scorer, and helps sure up that bench. So the addition of Teague helps nullify the loss of Wanamaker, and Teague will be a solid addition for this Celtics bench.
The Celtics had a pretty good offseason. They got two shooters and scorers to go on their bench from the draft. Those two being Aaron Nesmith and Payton Pritchard. They did lose Gordon Hayward, but now this gives them opportunity to give Tatum and Brown more shots, allowing them to be better. This will also help them late in games as they can get the ball to their best players. They lost Brad Wanamaker, but got a great replacement in Jeff Teague. The Celtics fixed their center depth as they acquired Tristan Thompson. The Celtics got a lot better this offseason.
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