Boston Celtics: B/R sees Aaron Nesmith as a ‘certainty’ for rotation

With all of the new faces Boston Celtics President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens brought on this past summer, the Cs rotation will be a crowded one…particularly on the wing.

New head coach Ime Udoka will have to sort out just how he will divvy up minutes between Stevens’ acquisitions and the guys already on the roster. It’s an enviable problem that could turn into a non-enviable one if he buries the wrong guys on the bench and they thrive elsewhere later down the line.

One guy that doesn’t seem likely to be glued to the bench is the 2020 NBA Draft’s #14 pick, Aaron Nesmith. The Vanderbilt product had a nice stretch-run at the very end of the 2020-21 season where he scored 15+ points in four of his final ten appearances.

He had an uneven postseason against the Brooklyn Nets but followed that up with a strong showing in the Las Vegas Summer League. Bleacher Report’s Zach Buckley believes that might have done enough to solidify his spot in the rotation:

"Nesmith headed into his first real NBA offseason looking like a certainty for Boston’s 2021-22 rotation, and his five games at summer league only solidified that. He averaged a team-high 17.4 points on 50.0/36.1/80.0 shooting."

Nesmith and fellow former #14 pick Romeo Langford appear to be in the biggest rotation battle during upcoming training camp. It’s unlikely both get a lion’s share of minutes considering the glut of power forwards on the roster (Juan Hernangomez, Grant Williams, Jabari Parker).

Nesmith finished up his rookie season with per-game averages of 4.7 points, 2.8 rebounds, and half an assist, and had a shooting slash of 44/37/79. He could be due for a breakout under Udoka if he can get more open looks, something the presence of a facilitator like Dennis Schroder in the Boston Celtics second unit could help make a reality.