Boston Celtics Should Pay Avery Bradley

Avery Bradley has done more than enough to prove he is worthy of a significant pay raise, and can be a big part of this Boston Celtics core for the future. As he stands right now, there is no doubting that Bradley is underpaid. Even if he was not much improved on the offensive end, his defense alone makes him valuable to any team. Bradley is still getting paid just over $7 million a season and even without the impending cap increase, he has done more than enough to earn a significant pay raise.

Hopefully the Celtics will find a way to bring in the max contract players they need and still give Bradley the pay raise he deserves because there is no doubting that someone elsewhere will be willing to pay him that money.

In an NBA that is dominated by outstanding offensive guards, the value of someone like Bradley cannot be understated. To have a player that can match up and, at the very least, slow down the elite guards in the NBA is crucial to having success on the defensive end.

After doing a stellar job against one of the NBA’s most dominant offensive forces in Damian Lillard, Bradley was praised as the best perimeter defender in the league. He responded to that game by following it up by doing maybe the most effective job in shutting down Stephen Curry, handing them their first home loss of the season.

Bradley has already become the peak of what can be expected by a perimeter defender and he is as important to the Celtics’ identity as anyone else currently on the team. The number one aspect of the Celtics this season, and the thing that gave them the edge that allowed them to fight for the three seed in the east, is the defense of their guards.

Marcus Smart brought the intensity and Evan Turner brought the physical matchup but Bradley set the tone each and every night on the defensive end. The Celtics had a lot of shaky defenders in their front court and their rim protection was non existent. Without Bradley, the Celtics would not have been able to dominate the way they did on the defensive end, and there is no telling how the Atlanta Hawks series would have turned out if he was playing.

Bradley did not lead the team in steals per game or in blocks per game but he was the consistency their defense needed, that allowed them to take the risks they needed in order to get the turnovers that were crucial to their success on both ends. Bradley’s defense is not just about defensive production because the Celtics needed the transition game to be at their best on offense too.

The great guard depth that the Celtics have makes it appear as though Bradley may be expendable.  Smart is already not that far behind him on the defensive end. Turner can physically matchup too any guard in the NBA and Terry Rozier, in just his rookie season, demonstrated how close he is to being a true NBA defender. The problem is that even if all three of them reach their defensive potential, they still may not be as good as Bradley. And, on top of already reaching what many look at as the defensive potential of the likes of Smart and Rozier, Bradley has taken the step that is expected or Smart and Rozier as a knock down shooter.

The one area that Bradley may be lacking is his ability to create a shot. Fortunately, the Celtics play in a system where their ball movement will do enough of the play making and that allows Bradley to have his impact strictly as a shooter.

Exactly how much money Bradley wants may be the difference maker but there is a reason he is upset with his current contract. The Celtics are getting Bradley at absurd value and even if they are planning on spending much of their cap on new players, they need to secure one of the most important players currently on the team.

Defense is why the Celtics cannot afford to let Bradley go but offense is what gives him the potential to be a top player on the Celtics, even after they make the additions they are expecting this offseaosn.

The biggest problem on the Celtics this season was their shooting. Their offense played fast enough and moved the ball well enough. Things then broke down once they needed to start hitting their shots. Bradley was one of the few players on the Celtics that could be trusted to hit his shot consistently, and he could do it from all over the court.

The Celtics are in desperate need of better three point shooting and losing Bradley will make them go backwards in that regard. Bradley finished behind only Kelly Olynyk and Jonas Jerebko from beyond the arc with a mark of 36.1%. Throw in that Bradley is even better in the mid range game and he gives them a reliable offensive option, something the Celtics are lacking.

Even if the Celtics go out and get a dominant offensive player to go along with Isaiah Thomas, they need depth that includes reliable shooters. The Celtics will not make the necessary improvements on the offensive end until they become much better shooting as a unit. The Celtics play in a system where each player on the court needs to be ready to take and hit any good opportunity created for them. Bradley will never hesitate when he gets that open shot and he has proven that he can be trusted to hit these shots.

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Bradley may not have the potential to be that superstar that the Celtics need but he is the exact kind of player they still need to make that step into becoming a contender. Bradley has reached a point where the Celtics know what they can expect of him. Bradley is certainly being underpaid on his current contract, the question will become how much the Celtics value one of the only players on the team that has been a difference maker on both ends.