Boston Celtics: ranking each player’s output at the halfway mark
4. Gordon Hayward
Gordon Hayward was off to a blistering start to the 2019-20 season, shooting over 50% from the 3-point line before going down with a hand injury. Since then, he hasn’t had the same impact, but he also hasn’t needed to.
With Hayward’s player option for 2020-21 looming, he may not be part of the team’s future unless he is willing to take a discount. His efficiency this year (16 points on 50% shooting) isn’t enough to warrant a max deal like the one Ainge signed him to in 2017, but he could be priced out of Boston with Brown and Tatum’s extensions looming.
3. Jayson Tatum
There have been many games this year where Jayson Tatum appears to be the team’s best player and primary scorer. That isn’t a mirage. There are many instances of Tatum showing the “Mamba Mentality” of taking over games in the fourth quarter to close out a win.
That said, there have also been games–like his 1-18 showing against the Dallas Mavericks in a win this past November–where his in-between game has betrayed him. That the Boston Celtics won that game is proof that while Tatum is a vital member of the C’s rotation, he isn’t the team’s most important player.
2. Jaylen Brown
Jaylen Brown’s season has been brilliant on many levels, and somehow it feels like the former #3 pick in the NBA Draft is not getting the proper kudos for how good of a season he is having. Shooting 50% from the field and 39% from the 3-point line is something that would have constant media coverage if it came from a wanna-be celebrity like Kyle Kuzma.
Brown is proving that the $115 million extension he signed before the season is not merely just a non-overpay, it may actually turn out to be a bargain relative to the deals that are about to be signed with the salary cap climbing.
1. Kemba Walker
Kemba Walker has been exactly what Danny Ainge was hoping for when he inked the Bronx native to a four year, $141 million deal in the off-season. He was recently named as an All-Star starter for the Eastern Conference, and it is more than deserved.
Walker has helped transform this team from a miserable unit with little motivation to win for the common good to one that enjoys playing together, and more importantly, shares the same goals for the 2019-20 season and beyond: team success.