Expectations for Demetrius Jackson’s Career With Boston

Here’s what you should expect from the Celtics second round pick

The Boston Celtics and Demetrius Jackson agreed to a four-year, $5.5 million deal after the Celtics selected him with the 45th pick in the 2016 NBA Draft. Despite the projected first round pick point guard falling to the second round, he will still be paid the same amount as Ante Zizic – 23rd pick in the draft.

It came with disappointment for Jackson that he fell to the second round, however he couldn’t have landed in a better spot for his development. He starts low on the depth chart, in Maine most likely, as Boston has continuously drafted guards over the past couple of years.

Still, Jackson entered summer league with the possibility of out-playing last year’s first round pick Terry Rozier and rivaling him for minutes. It didn’t pan out that way as Rozier easily had the best summer on Boston and most likely worked his way into the rotation.

It was a rocky summer league for the rookie guard though, as he averaged 5.2 points and one steal per game in 16.6 minutes while playing in all eight games, starting three.

He wasn’t as aggressive as when he played at Notre Dame and Jackson didn’t show the innate ability to run an offense. Still, it was his first professional action and the potential that he showed outweighed the bad. He became more comfortable as summer went on and had a couple of nice plays when he got the start. That’s why he was guaranteed a roster spot over the next couple of seasons, while former first round picks R.J. Hunter and James Young are battling for their careers with the Celtics.

During summer league, despite a couple of his shots coming up noticeably short, he managed to shoot 45 percent from three. After his three-point percentage dropped to 33.1 percent as a junior at Notre Dame there were questions surrounding his consistency from deep – only season he shot under 40 percent from three at Notre Dame. While summer league has to be taken with a grain of salt, the Celtics saw enough in him to want to try to develop him.

With Isaiah Thomas, Avery Bradley, Marcus Smart and Terry Rozier, there isn’t a lot of room in the back court. The Celtics starters are set in stone barring a major injury, Smart is one of the best defensive guards in the NBA and Rozier will get a chance to show why he deserves significant minutes following his impressive end to the season as a rookie and summer league.

With that being said, Demetrius Jackson’s role over the next couple of seasons will be minimal. Jaylen Brown would likely step in to fill a hole at shooting guard if Boston suffered a major injury or the Celtics would have a three-man rotation in their back court for a short amount of time, like most teams do.

While that may not be how Jackson envisioned his career starting, it could be a blessing in disguise. Playing in Maine as a rookie will give him a ton of opportunities to grow as a player. He will be around other NBA talent as the Celtics won’t have enough room to keep all their recent draft picks. There is a good chance that Ben Bentil, Abdel Nader and James Young all join him in Maine. Therefore, playing alongside fellow rookies who look to have potential to have decent NBA careers will be more helpful than playing alongside veterans who are still searching for their NBA chance.

It will also give Jackson full responsibility as the team’s point guard and one of the main scoring options. At 6’2″ Jackson doesn’t have great height. Owning a solid outside shot and become a better passer will be keys for him to make it with the Celtics.

Jackson will get no shortage of shots as Celtics in Maine last season were given the green light on offense. Last season when R.J. Hunter played in eight D-League games, he attempted 12.9 shots per game. Just like in the NBA, D-League teams know who are the best players and who their affiliated teams want to develop. That’s why Hunter saw so many shots and why Jackson will be one of their focal points when he’s there.

With Thomas, Smart and Rozier all being able to man the point, it’s unknown if Jackson will still be on the bench. He could have a similar rookie campaign to Jordan Mickey who played in 23 D-League games last season or James Young who has appeared in 31 games over his two seasons.

Plus, that could mean Jackson’s career path will be swayed towards being a shooting guard. He arguably has the best scoring ability out of recent draft picks and his athleticism will help make up for his lack of size.

Having Jackson see consistent playing time and working on becoming a better passer and defender would arguably be more beneficial than sitting at the end of the bench. Besides, the only time he would see playing time would be during blowouts. While I’m expecting Jackson to appear at the end of a couple of games, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him spending most of his time in Maine.

More importantly, this gives the Celtics a lot of flexibility in the near future. The Celtics are no strangers to trade rumors. Whenever a star becomes possibly available then the Celtics are quickly linked to them. If Jackson can shine in Maine and show he’s adapting to the Celtics style of play and improves his weaknesses – passing and defense – the Celtics’ back court will become more available.

Jackson is a freakish athlete, which is why he got to the rim with ease at Notre Dame. There is no doubt that his athleticism and scoring potential has a place in the NBA, but the Celtics would need to make room. Making a trade now and implementing Jackson in any sort of role would be risky, that’s why they’ve signed him to a four-year deal so they can see if he can develop and be a reliable replacement if a trade happened.

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Also, Avery Bradley and Isaiah Thomas both hit free agency after the 2017-18 season. While re-signing Bradley is a possibility, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Celtics opt towards letting Bradley walk and allowing one of their recent draft picks to step up. While it’s still a couple of seasons away, a couple of promising seasons in Maine from Jackson could sway the Celtics.

While he wouldn’t be able to replace the production Bradley gives on defense, Marcus Smart is a very good defender and Jaylen Brown projects to be a shutdown defender once he develops. If Jackson is able to attack the basket like he did at Notre Dame and own a solid three-point percentage then Boston could possibly have own of the most explosive back courts in the league waiting in the shadows.

Boston needs to add a star but they need to trade away depth in order to do so. Whether that means trading Jackson or another bench player and having Jackson step up, the explosive point guard could be a major part of the Celtics rotation in a couple of seasons.

Next: What Does Marcus Smart Need to Show in 2016-17?

He showed potential this summer, which is why he got a long-term deal, but the development has to continue over the next couple of seasons. Although, barring a major injury or trade, Jackson will not see significant time over his first couple of seasons. It’s disappointing that we won’t be able to see one of the most explosive guards in the draft as a rookie, however, Brad Stevens belief in earning your minutes is especially true for Demetrius Jackson.