3 Reasons To Temper Expectations For the Boston Celtics

As the hype train heads towards Boston, let’s take it with a grain of salt.

The Boston Celtics are coming off an impressive season, have a solid future, great coach and were able to land a big name free agent. As everything seems to fall in place for the Celtics the hype surrounding them for this upcoming season is growing, here are three reasons to remain grounded with your hopes for the Celtics this season.

Eastern Conference –

As NBA fans, it seems we always hear about the ‘massive disparity’ between the Western and Eastern Conferences. Although there may be some truth to the west being slightly better, I rarely hear anybody note how competitive the Eastern Conference is. With the recent addition of center Al Horford, there is now a lot of talk that the Celtics are the most likely suitor to square off with the defending champion Cleveland Cavaliers in the ECF. I think it’s important to note that the Celtics weren’t the only team that improved this offseason. Also, even the teams who lost key guys such as the: Bulls, Hawks and Heat will not fall too far and remain somewhat competitive.

Out of the eastern conference teams that were able to improve their roster this offseason, I think the Celtics improved theirs the least. Obviously the fact the Celtics were already a good team plays a role in this take, but certainly the Indiana Pacers and New York Knicks drastically improved their roster.

For as much as the internet already loves to troll the Knicks for adding perpetually injured players like Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah, that’s going to be a solid roster. Fans seem to forget how good Carmelo Anthony, Noah and Rose are individually and the casual fans are still snoozing on Kristaps Porzingis. I think it’s reasonable to proceed with caution when facing off with that team.

Meanwhile, the  Pacers were able to add Jeff Teague, Thaddeus Young and Al Jefferson to help take the pressure off of superstar, Paul George. The Pacers only finished three games behind the Celtics and were able to significantly improve in three positions, while the Celtics only improved one position. The combination of a proven star, in George, and excellent complementary players in: Teague, Ellis, Turner, Young and Jefferson is going to be tough to handle. Unless the Celtics are able to add another star, my prediction for the ECF is going to be the revival of the King James vs King George rivalry.

Unknown Chemistry –

Team chemistry was instrumental in the success of the Celtics last season. The funny thing about chemistry is you never really know what or who might impact it. As awful as Jared Sullinger was in the playoffs, he was still a serviceable big man and helped the Celtics battle for favorable playoff position throughout the season.

Also, a lot of fans overlooked how valuable Evan Turner was to the Celtics. Turner’s versatility and ability to facilitate the offense and rebound was critical for the second unit’s success. I’m not going to sit here and say that going from Evan Turner and Jared Sullinger to Gerald Green and Al Horford is a downgrade in any way. Obviously, in terms of talent it’s an upgrade, but you never know exactly how players will mesh until the season begins.

No Star –

Last year the Celtics’ motto was “we’re one superstar” and it’s looking like this humble, yet obvious credence will hold true for 2016-2017 season as well. Although the Celtics were able to boast at least one all-star on their roster, in Thomas, it’s clear that he is not a superstar talent. As fantastic as Thomas was last season his weaknesses were magnified in the playoffs as he shot 39% from the field for the series.

Maybe Thomas just needs some help and he will get that with Horford. However, I have similar issues with Horford, he, like Thomas, is not a superstar talent either. For as great as Thomas and Horford are individually, it’s hard to decipher which one is a standard ‘go-to-guy’. Undoubtedly, the Celtics can be successful with these two leading them, but to take that next step into true contender status, they will need to seek a third star.

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While it’s certainly exciting to see the Celtics mentioned as title contenders again, it’s important to be patient. Realize that this is not yet a finished product. In reality, when the Celtics do finally become legitimate title contenders, the roster may look completely different from what it is now. Until then try not to have unrealistic expectations for the Celtics or you may be let down.