Jae Crowder Leading the Defensive Surge

Jae Crowder is leading the way for this defensive resurgence for the Boston Celtics

After being one of the bottom dwellers in terms of defensive efficiency all season long, the Boston Celtics have seen a change in their identity since the All Star Break, where they have soared up to a top five defensive rating in the NBA. The biggest difference is the health of Avery Bradley. The Celtics were never the same when without him on the court, and their defense suffered every time he was sidelined.

That being said, Bradley is not the only difference in the defense. The Celtics knew that Bradley’s injuries were holding them back, but they also knew that the players on the court were not playing as well as they did last season. One player that is clearly having a better defensive impact since the the break also happens to be what many consider to be their most versatile and important individual defender, Jae Crowder.

While it is difficult to take the versatility title away from Marcus Smart, considering he is a guard who can be seen covering Centers, Crowder often plays a similar role, and gets much less credit because he has the additional size.

On top of the versatility that makes him vital to any lineup, particularly in small ball situations, Crowder is often given the most difficult assignment, covering the toughest athletes and best player on the opposing team, as long as that primary option is not a guard, in which case Bradley or Smart will take that matchup.

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The degree of difficulty in terms of what is expected out of Crowder may be a reason for that slight dip in effectiveness to begin the year, but he has more than found his prime form since the break, and is becoming the most effective version of himself that the Celtics have ever seen, and that is going to be vital to a deep playoff run.

Going back to their early struggles, one thing Brad Stevens always talked about was how much better their initial defense was, with the problem being that they completely broke down after they gave up far too many second chance opportunities because of poor rebounding. Part of Crowder’s recent surge has been on the boards, and that is exactly what they need him to keep up to close the season.

The Celtics realize the rebounding limitations of their bigs, and have accepted the fact that they are not going to be anywhere close to a good rebounding team. That being said, an overall increased effort on the boards was essential to this defense turning it around, and Crowder is leading the way in that category. He is currently averaging a career high 5.7 rebounds per game, which is good enough to make him third on the team, and just one rebound per game behind their leading big man, Al Horford.

Crowder, along with Bradley, have taken on additional rebounding responsibility that they normally would not have to, and Crowder will continue to improve with the effort has has been giving in that area in recent play. Crowder has collected double digit rebounds in three of his last five games, and all three of those games were wins.

Crowder’s impact on the defensive end goes far beyond what he does on the boards, but it is yet another way that he is contributing for this team, and working on reestablishing that identity of a defensive juggernaut that was established last season.

The Celtics have known for a while now how good and important Crowder is on defense. The potential matchups they can target is completely expanded by Crowder’s ability and confidence to guard any player on the court. The cohesiveness of their unit is build around the stability that Crowder brings, and his unbelievable aggressiveness is one of the best ways for them to get running in transition.

Crowder realized that the best way for this defense to improve was rebounding. They had other issues, but the rebounding is what made everything worse all over the court, and was clearly their biggest weakness.

Once again, Crowder is leading by example of the court, and letting his play become an example for the rest of the team. The only way they can improve as rebounders is as a unit. They do not have the individual talent for one player to step up and fix that issue, but Crowder is setting the tone that is allowing their defense to once again flourish.

Next: Why the Boston Celtics Have What is Takes for a Deep Playoff Run

Crowder is once again expanding what the Celtics can expect from him on the court, and he has picked the perfect time to step up like this as they finally have the health to put the days of being a struggling defensive team behind them.

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