The Boston Celtics could end up missing Aron Baynes on defense
As of right now, it is hard to imagine Aron Baynes being brought back with a significant role for the Boston Celtics next season. They are embracing all their versatility, and there really is not much room on the roster. The Celtics could have so much talent right now, and Baynes is more limited than maybe anyone else on the team
Even so, Baynes played a distinct and valuable role for the Celtics. He and Al Horford were one of the most effective defensive duos in the NBA. He brought fearless strength in the paint, and brought phenomenal stability behind great perimeter defense.
There is a reason Baynes started almost this entire season, but it is going to be harder to reconcile that with so much more talent next season.
The problem is that the Celtics have no way of replacing his impact. They are not going to go out and get another traditional big, because if they want that they should just stick with him. That means the Celtics will be embracing small ball even more than before, putting a tremendous amount of pressure on their wings.
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The Celtics can absolutely be confident in the defense of Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum and Gordon Hayward. All of them will be able to move over and help defend a big, but that still leaves them more susceptible to struggling on the boards and being bullies inside.
The Celtics often needed Baynes for certain situations, because they were not always able to dictate their terms. If the Celtics do not have the presence of Baynes, and they are facing a truly dominant front court, they might not be able to maintain their best lineups.
The key for the Celtics will be making sure they use their wings in a way that forces the opponent to adjust. If teams are responding to their small ball, there is no doubt they will be able to get it done on defense.
Unfortunately, it may not always work out so well, and the Celtics will have to make adjustments if they are going to be using so much versatility and so little traditional size.
Baynes is not valuable enough to justify taking away the minutes of players ahead of him, but do not forget the impact he had on this team this season. He brought truly elite defense, and filled in his role exactly as the Celtics need.
Maybe he did enough to be brought back and continue to have a role off the bench. When you start looking at how deep they already are, and how many young options they have in the back court, it gets harder and harder to see a spot for Baynes. If that is the case, they better have a great plan to maintain their defense without him, because he was crucial to a lot of what they wanted to do on defense last season.