Free Throw Differential Will be Key for the Boston Celtics

Free throw differential is one area the Boston Celtics must be improved in this season

One of the most important aspects of the Boston Celtics last season was their aggressiveness. Offenisve aggressiveness lead them to generating enough opportunities to be the fifth highest scoring team while being in the bottom ten in shooting. That aggressiveness was also their biggest defensive edge, allowing them to generate the most turnovers in the league.

Unfortunately, there is a downside to their defensive aggressiveness as they gave up the third most free throw attempts in the league. The Celtics made nothing easy but they continually struggled to keep their opponents off the line, but that could change this season.

The Celtics finished with a free throws attempted differential of -2.5 and that needs to change this season. The key will not be trying to make up that difference strictly on the defensive end. The Celtics will also be in a better position to increase their free throws on the offensive end this season.

The Celtics attempted the 12th most free throws per game last year, but taking into account pace, they are not getting to the line at a good rate. The Celtics have Isaiah Thomas leading the league in drives to the rim, but life in the paint has been difficult for them.

Without the necessary floor spacing provided by shooting, and without a formidable offensive presence in the paint, the Celtics were put a difficult position to finish on the inside. Brining in Al Horford should help in both those areas. He can open up lanes on the inside in multiple ways, and no one on the Celtics will turn down those opportunities.

Right now, Thomas is the only one who has a real impact driving to the rim. He does that because his ability to finish through contact and maneuver around blockers is unmatched on the team. Guys like Jae Crowder, Marcus Smart, Terry Rozier and even Avery Bradley have proven they can be effective going at the rim, the problem is they depend a lot more on others to open up those opportunities. With Horford on the court, the already aggressive Celtics should have better opportunities to take advantage of driving to the rim.

Horford should be a factor in generating more opportunities at the rim and that alone could make a big difference in their free throw differential. Teams will have a more difficult time defending in the paint and that should lead to a lot more opportunities at the charity stripe.

Defense, however, is where Horford’s presence will be more impactful. The Celtics had absolutely no interior presence on the defensive end. They struggled rebounding, they struggled blocking shots and they were abused time and time again by dominant bigs. Teams looked to attack the Celtics’ defense on the inside and with their aggressiveness they were rarely able to avoid fouling when they had to compensate for their weak interior defense.

With Horford, teams will no longer be able to attack the inside like they used to, and the over aggressive guards will not have nearly as much responsibility on the inside. Horford will do a much better job of defending in the paint and that should cut out a portion of the free throws given up by the Celtics.

Horford will not automatically flip the Celtics’ turnover differential, but with him on the court it is an area that needs to be improved this year. The Celtics’ aggressive perimeter defense and tendency to try and force teams into turnovers will always lead to a higher amount of fouls, but that does not mean it has to be an area of weakness.

The Celtics did a great job finishing with the sixth highest free throw percentage in the league at 78.8% last year. Free throws can be a solid portion of the Celtics’ offense next year and with Rozier and Smart leading the second unit, a lot more could be done on the inside, even when Horford is not on the court.

Both Smart and Rozier were awful shooters last year and they will be taking on what was Evan Turner‘s responsibilities as a ball handler. These guards love to play at a high pace and they will always look to be aggressiveness in the paint. The Celtics have guards that can fluorish driving to the rim, they just need to be a better job of opening up space on the inside. There is no doubting that Rozier and Smart will be much more effective on the offensive end if more time is spent at the rim than beyond the three point line.

On offense and on defense, it could be a dangerous sign if the Celtics do not improve their free throw differential. If they are fouling too much, on the inside or the outside, that threatens the most important part of their defense in generating turnovers.

The Celtics also need to maintain their aggressiveness on offense. Not getting to the free throw line could be an indication that the Celtics are settling too much and depending too much on outside shooting. The Celtics should be an improved shooting team this year, but one player will not fix that issue.

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The Celtics did a great job of masking some big areas of concern last season. Free throw differential may not have been the biggest problem, but it is one of the many ways the Celtics need to be improved this offseason.