Through 47 games played, the Boston Celtics have seemingly looked like a shell of the team that made it to within two games of reaching the NBA Finals just a season ago.
Boasting a sub-.500 record of 23-24, despite having two All-Stars yet again in tow in Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, the Cs find themselves stationed in the seventh seed out in the Eastern Conference standings.
With the high hopes and expectations that followed this team into the year, being penciled in with the fourth-best odds to take home the Larry O’Brien trophy by year’s end, seeing them where they currently are coupled with the struggles in which they’ve faced is certainly a cause for concern.
The Boston Celtics still have time to turn their season around
However, with 25 games remaining on the docket on top of the fact that the difference between the ninth seed and the fourth seed is separated by a mere three wins, there’s still ample time for the shamrocks to find their stride and get back on track.
With the trade deadline in the rearview and the majority of “big name” talents found on the buyout market now scooped up, Boston will have to look internally in an effort to inch their way closer to their preseason status.
Here are 3 ways in which they can achieve this goal:
(**WRITTEN PRIOR TO WEDNESDAY NIGHT’S GAME**)
Way to turn season around No. 1) Jayson Tatum must revert back to bubble play
Jayson Tatum is an unbelievable scorer and flat-out star in this league — this we all know.
The fact that he’s finding himself averaging 25.3 points on 45 percent shooting from the field and 39 percent shooting from deep and the Boston Celtics are still in command of a losing record is a bit perplexing.
However, looking at the struggles that this team faces, it’s not so much scoring that has been the issue but, rather, how they wind up scoring.
This Celtics squad has been heavily reliant on isolation offense, with Tatum alone ranking fourth in the NBA in isolation shot attempts.
Perhaps what this team needs more than the wing’s scoring prowess (though they still need this aspect of his game) is his passing skills, similar to what we witnessed in the bubble last season and, more specifically, in the postseason.
During last year’s playoff run that ended in their third Eastern Conference Finals appearance in four seasons, Tatum became somewhat of a point-forward, dropping five dimes per game — seven of his 17 total games saw over six assists dished out and one seeing as many as 11.
Ball movement has always been the key to a successful Brad Stevens offense and perhaps Tatum could be that player to help pick up the slack for this team that currently ranks 24th in assists per game.