Pondering the Celtics future more hopefully.

Minus the big free agent signing or the blockbuster  trade there  is reason to believe the Celtics future is bright.

I haven’t believed for a moment that the Boston Celtics would get a big free agent signing this  year. Nor have I thought they would make a blockbuster trade. The metrics just didn’t add  up. I grant that something can and probably will still happen but maybe not something big. My guess is that the Celtics will make  a deal for some young, relatively obscure big that they like. I don’t know who but that would be my guess as to a move the Celtics need to make.

After that minor deal is made the Celtics will move forward with a  roster mostly intact. The Celtics will be able to move some of their kids up. Gone are likely Amir Johnson (he’s gone), James Young (gone) and Gerald Green. Replacing those three on the team will be, I think,  Jayson Tatum, Ante Zizic and Demetrius Jacks.on I expect Kelly Olynyk to  be resigned. I believe the Celtics will keep Tyler Zeller (No he’s gone) or Jonas Jerebco based on whoever the big they trade for is.

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The most positive spin on this is that the second unit will be super young and athletic. Expect Olynyk to become a starter and the second team could be Marcus  Smart, Terry Rozier, Jaylen Brown, Jayson  Tatum and Ante Zizic. That second unit would be defensively superior and extraordinarily athletic. Just imagine the development if this group plays a consistent 15 to 20  minutes a night.

By midseason we will know which of these kids are the future and that’s what this is all about. These kids have to prove they belong to become valuable to the team either as future starters or trade bait. This logic holds true for  Guershon Yabusele, Abdel Nadar and those seven first round picks coming over the next three years.

The hopeful idea that some or all of this young talent could  blossom  into something special is far more interesting than trading for some established star. This proposed second unit has the potential to push the starters. What if Smart starts nailing his threes. What if Brown and Rozier start finishing at the hoop. What if Tatum and Zizic can rebound like studs.  That’s  entertainment.

The other point is that because of this young talent the Celtics will be better next year even without the “big” whatever. They will be deeper, more experienced, more athletic while  being  younger. Nothing bad to take from that.

Next: Marcus Smart is Useful to the Boston Celtics

Lastly a word  on draft picks. Seems to me that only eight or ten players  drafted  in any year make it past their rookie deal. The higher the pick the better the odds but an NBA career is hard  to come by. With all the picks the Celtics have lined up they have simply increased their odds of finding  a real keeper. You gotta play the odds right!