Boston Celtics: 3 takeaways from C’s Summer League debut

The Boston Celtics emerged victorious in their first game of the Las Vegas Summer League against the Atlanta Hawks by a score of 85-83.

C’s fans were treated to great performances from familiar faces like Payton Pritchard, Romeo Langford, Aaron Nesmith, and Carsen Edwards while also seeing new players for the first time, like Yam Madar, Sam Hauser, and second-round pick Juhann Begarin.

After getting out to a slow start, the entire team rallied behind great hustle and team play. Overall, it was a promising first showing from the younger guys.

So what stood out most?

The Yam Madar hype is real so far…

The stat line might not look too crazy, Madar finished with eight points, two rebounds, and two assists, but don’t let that fool you.

His energy off the bench was noticeable right away as he helped guide the Celtics on a 17-2 run upon checking into the game. Madar was one of the more comfortable and composed players on the court, yet still played with very impressive quickness.

His jump shot looked clean, he attacked the paint well when driving, and he even had a few pick and roll reps where he made good reads and passes.

Perhaps the most impressive part of his game though was his defense, which leads to the next point of emphasis.

The Boston Celtics dominated the perimeter

The Celtic guards were dominant on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball.

When Payton Pritchard and Yam Madar were in the backcourt together, the Hawks struggled to get anything going offensively due to the immense on-ball pressure from the duo.

Offensively, Boston let the ball fly from three, some more efficiently than others. Pritchard, Langford, Nesmith, and Edwards combined to attempt 38 threes. Pritchard made seven while the other three combined for six.

Overall, it was pleasant to see them shoot the ball so aggressively. This is their best opportunity to take these kinds of shots within a realistic game flow.

It was especially nice to see Langford show off his willingness to shoot after news of him improving his jump shot this offseason.

Even Juhann Begarin, who was drafted as a defensive-minded player, hit his first two three-point attempts of the game.

All of these guards showed off some playmaking skills as well, which is another great sign for the Celtics considering their current depth issues.

The battle for the backup PG spot heats up

With the loss of Kemba Walker and no other point guards signed to the Boston Celtics yet this offseason, it’s looking more and more likely every day that they will stay in-house when it comes to the backup point guard position.

Because of that, all of Pritchard, Langford, and Madar will be getting opportunities to run the show throughout this Summer League.

If I had to rank them after this first game I would go Pritchard > Madar > Langford.

Starting with Langford, he actually showed multiple flashes of good playmaking both in the pick and roll and in transition. Yet, when it came to running the offense, Langford looked uncomfortable.

His handle was loose when bringing the ball up the court which means he could susceptible to steals when up against good defensive guards.

Yam Madar, as I already mentioned, had multiple instances of good playmaking as well. When compared to Langford, he simply looked more comfortable during his opportunities to run the offense.

And then when it came to Pritchard, he was the best in terms of composure and playmaking abilities. Something that we already saw flashes of during his rookie season.

Now, I doubt any of these guys run away with the job by the start of the season, but these reps certainly do count.

Overall, it was a productive first game. Nobody looked unplayable. All of the returning players showed signs of offseason improvement while also setting a good foundation for the rest of the summer.