The Boston Celtics are currently sitting in the #4 seed in the Eastern Conference playoff picture. Right below them is tonight’s opponent, the Toronto Raptors (of Tampa Bay), who could surpass them in the win column tonight.
That the Cs could potentially lose home-field privileges in the first-round through the season’s first 24 games during a shortened 72-game season in 2020-21 is far from ideal. That is far from progress from a season ago, when the Cs started the season 17-7.
Things could improve, but the Houdini believes it will take a transaction of any kind to get them there. Danny Ainge believes the same, as he has reportedly been concocting upgrade scenarios. With a $28.5 million traded player exception and upcoming draft picks that may not have roster spots to occupy, HH is waiting for a transaction to be announced by the Shams Charania/Adrian Wojnarowski reporting elites.
At the moment, Boston is occupying a lower rung in the east hierarchy, and ESPN noted as much, with Tim Bontemps putting them and the Philadelphia 76ers in the “lurking a level below” section of the Milwaukee Bucks in a piece about how the East can block the Brooklyn Nets’ path to the Finals.
Bontemps believes that Kemba Walker’s inconsistency and health concerns are the key to the Cs season and lack of upward mobility beyond the top tier teams:
"Several people pointed to Walker, specifically, as the key to Boston’s season. Given the nagging issues with his left knee going back a full calendar year, there is skepticism he will maintain his health over the course of the next six months.“Jaylen and Tatum are one hell of a pair,” another Eastern Conference scout said. “There’s very few I’d take over them. But I just don’t think they have the firepower to keep up with [the Nets]. I just have a lot of doubts. They need Kemba to be back to being peak Kemba. Otherwise, I don’t see it.”"
Scouts across the league seem to be catching on to my line of thinking: Kemba Walker’s a major question mark. An answer to whatever concerns one could feel would be a Walker trade, but Ainge may not want to consider such a drastic move (even if he should) until the offseason.
Not considering such a move could keep the Boston Celtics lurking a level below the Eastern Conference finals, where ESPN believes the Nets and Bucks are destined to meet at season’s end.