Boston Celtics: “Buy or Sell” on 3 recent bold predictions for C’s season

Boston Celtics prediction No. 3) “Aaron Nesmith makes 150-plus threes”

Last, but certainly not least, we have perhaps the boldest prediction of the entire article as well as the one we truly hope happens — last year’s 14th overall pick, Aaron Nesmith, knocks down 150-plus triples.

Coming into the 2020 NBA Draft, we at the site were rather big on the Vanderbilt star and even went about labeling him as the best shooter in his class what with the fact that he converted on 52 percent of his deep attempts during his final season with the Commodores.

Despite a rocky rookie campaign, Nesmith did show flashes of being a quality player in this league, especially towards the end of the year where, during the final nine games of the regular season, he posted averages of 9.7 points and 4.9 rebounds on 53.6 percent shooting from the floor and 45 percent shooting from deep.

Now, heading into year two many expect the small forward to take some more strides forward as he looks to try and live up to the expectations that come with being a lottery selection. Buckley shares these expectations and, apparently, he believes he will become one of the best long-range snipers in the league:

"Aaron Nesmith won’t take a star turn this season. Other than some possible spot starts for injured players, he probably won’t open many contests, either. But his shooting stroke could grant him not-insignificant floor time, and if it’s as sharp as it can be, the 21-year-old could challenge the league’s best role-playing sharpshooters for three-point makes. Davis Bertans, Patty Mills and Bryn Forbes all cracked that 150-triple club, and none logged 1,700 minutes. Bertans and Forbes both played fewer than 1,500. Nesmith could get to that number by finding volume and efficiency with his outside shot. Knockdown snipers are among the best helpers for stars, and if he becomes one, he’ll help pull defensive attention away from Tatum and Brown. That’s reason enough to green-light the Vanderbilt product for regular minutes and all the three-point shots he can find."

Now listen, we absolutely agree with the consensus opinion that Aaron Nesmith will have a much more productive sophomore season than he did rookie, and even believe he could wind up being high up on the league’s shooting percentage list, specifically from 3-point range.

That said, when it comes to the number of attempts Buckley is boldly predicting the 21-year-old to have in year two, we find it to be a tad bit too bold.

The 150-plus club is one filled with either NBA All-Stars or high-profile role players who log serious minutes and play massive roles for their individual teams, both labels we do not anticipate Nesmith holding.

Yes, the article did go about and mention a few players in Bertans, Mills, and Forbes who all were in this aforementioned group despite seeing somewhat underwhelming minutes per game averages.

However, these three talents were unequivocally one of the top long-range shooters on their respective teams last season and, in turn, were utilized rather often in this department. On top of this, each of these players served as one of the more reliable scoring options on rather pedestrian offensive bench units.

Neither one of these aforementioned descriptions fits Nesmith’s situation heading into 2021-22, especially considering the fact that the bench scoring potential for the Boston Celtics looks to have gotten a whole lot better with the additions of Dennis Schroder and Enes Kanter coming aboard.

All things considered, though we certainly predict Aaron Nesmith will have an improved sophomore season, we don’t believe that he’ll receive the touches necessary to knock down 150-plus triples.

Verdict: Sell