You can find the Celtics named as one of the top title candidates in any NBA preview piece. But titles aren’t decided in October. Between now and June, there is a substantial amount of time, and over the year, many things could go wrong. Additionally, a lot of other teams consider themselves title contenders despite the fact that only one club wins the championship each year. As a result, the preview usually identifies the flaws or vulnerabilities of each team.
I decided to examine the Boston Celtics’ Achilles’ heels that are most frequently mentioned. Of course, I’ll share my opinions on how valid such worries are.
Left-hand dribble by Jaylen
This is something I’ve heard so frequently (from analysts, announcers, friends, random people on Twitter, etc.) that I considered turning it into a drinking game. Since I didn’t want to send anyone to the ER, I changed my mind.
See, I understand. If we close our eyes, we can both visualize Brown playing in the Finals against the Warriors and the ECF versus the Heat. The ball is speeding up the court in the opposite way as the player alternates between driving past his opponent and into the defense’s teeth and hunching over like an old guy trying to remember where he left his reading glasses.
I decided to examine the Achilles’ heel that is most frequently mentioned.
You can guarantee that Jaylen spent a significant amount of time this summer honing his ball handling techniques. But we also know that he did the same thing the previous summer. There is always space for improvement, and Brown has become better every year because he works so incredibly hard. Nevertheless, despite his best efforts, he might never possess the kind of handles required to serve as a team’s offensive center.
But the fact is, he shouldn’t have to. He adds a wealth of other exceptional talents to the table. He is among the game’s top transition finishers. He has a midrange bag to keep teams on their toes, is a skilled cutter, and is a deep danger. Additionally, he is an above average defender who, when focused, excels at on-ball defense.
He also has two teammates of the same caliber as All Stars, a superstar teammate, and two more elite-level support players. Maybe he would need to demonstrate that he can regularly drive to the left without losing the ball if he were a key member of a lottery team with a centered offensive scheme. But with this team, perhaps he can simply highlight his many talents and work to minimize circumstances in which he is forced to rely on a weakness.
Tatum’s inconsistent play and bad games
Last year, Jayson Tatum was a potential MVP candidate. Overall, it’s hard to think of many things he doesn’t excel in. He is a phenomenal basketball player and has already accomplished things that place him on par with the greatest Celtics of all time. In fact, he has reached the point of brilliance when others begin trying to find fault with him. This is only expected because, once you reach a certain level, you are no longer judged against the league as a whole, but rather against the other MVP contenders. which usually devolves into a trivial argument about picking nits.
The narrative that is starting to come up about Tatum is that he sometimes disappears or turns in clunker games in the playoffs. Some of that is fair, some of it isn’t, some of it will only be quieted by an NBA championship.
There have been days when it just feels like Tatum just didn’t have it. The three-point shot isn’t falling, then he starts pressing, then he starts complaining to refs, and sometimes he just steps back and let’s Jaylen take over. I’ll note that sometimes he also finishes with a blistering 4th quarter that makes you forget all about the first 3 quarters.
On the one hand, I don’t believe it is entirely accurate to characterize Tatum as inconsistent. Everyone has terrible games occasionally, so if you were to scatterplot his results and compare them to those of other MVP candidates, you would undoubtedly discover that. I’d also argue that Tatum has made game-winning plays in other MVP candidates’ categories (defense, rebounding, drawing defenders, and ball distribution), even in contests where his shot wasn’t falling. which usually devolves into a trivial argument about picking nits.
Tatum is still in his prime at this point (no more “only 19 jokes”). He needs to reduce the bad days as much as he can if he wants to become MVP or, more importantly, NBA champion. We have observed that stars will find a way to the line when they need to score points on a bad night. They find different ways to make their arguments while still involving teammates.
Personally, I’m not concerned and am forward to watch him refute his detractors in the postseason.
Mazzulla, Joe
As the team’s head coach for the previous season, Mazzulla occasionally appeared to be in over his head. To be fair, several of those incidents involved Erik Spolestra, who, in the playoffs, makes 10-year veteran coaches look like freshmen.
He would be the first to admit that he didn’t always make the right decisions during the previous season, but that was a wonderful learning experience that he would use to advance. He now has a greater support network thanks to the team. bringing in Charles Lee, Sam Cassell, and coaching expert Jeff Van Gundy in particular.
I have a tendency to believe that many of the kinks from last year will be worked out as there has been ample time to ponder and plan for the year. The team can always substitute one of those assistants for Joe if everything else fails (though I don’t think it will get to that).
(Or lack of) team clutch offense
One of those things needs to be disproven over time (but especially during the playoffs). In the last minutes of the game (or, perhaps, the half or quarter), the offensive did become predictable and sluggish. Over-reliance on isolation basketball contributed to some of that. Living and dying by three point shots was a part of it. Moreover, some
Mazzulla has frequently mentioned how this year will be “curveball”-filled. To do that, Porzingis must be put to work. That include allowing Holiday to contribute to the crucial offense. Additionally, it can just imply that Tatum and Brown trust their teammates more in certain circumstances. They have all the essential equipment and resources. They simply need to carry out their plan (which I have a hunch will happen).
Health/Age
Let’s make it brief. Any squad that had a serious injury would see their standings and prospects of winning the championship decline. Three players with a history of injuries that the Celtics dealt away were Smart, Williams, and Brogdon. Lady Luck is still a concern for them, but it is a concern for any club.
Age is catching up to Holiday and has already started to affect him on a daily basis. Having said that, those many
Conclusion
There are no perfect teams. Each team has flaws and weaknesses. That goes for the Celtics competitors as well. We’ll find out just how much of a contender this team is when the playoffs roll around. Till then I hope to enjoy a long season of the Celtics developing good habits and putting these narratives to bed.
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