Boston Celtics: 3 not so obvious Cs who could make or break season

Boston Celtics player No. 3) Aaron Nesmith

2021-22 will prove to be an unbelievably important season for the likes of last year’s lottery pick for the Boston Celtics, Aaron Nesmith, and how he produces will have a major impact on the team’s decision-making moving forward.

Last year, the C’s bench was once again putrid, finishing things off ranking 28th in points per game and 23rd in offensive rating.

Having a strong second unit scoring punch can have a massive effect on how a team produces and, though perhaps not the main factor in their ultimate quietus, the bench’s offensive tribulations certainly did not help.

But there’s hope heading into this year, for the Celtics managed to land stud scoring guard Dennis Schroder via free agency to help bolster the unit. However, one man cannot change the entire bench squad on his own and, in order for it to see real changes, Nesmith needs to continue his progressions into the regular season.

Showing an impressive array of offensive skills towards the end of last season (9.7 points on 53.6 percent shooting from the floor and 45 percent shooting from deep in the final nine games of the year) and through this year’s Summer League (posted 17.4 points and 6.2 rebounds per game on 50 percent shooting from the field), the second-year pro only managed to continue this level of play into game one of the preseason, posting 10 points and three boards on a stellar 80 percent shooting from the field and nearly 67 percent shooting from deep in just 14 minutes.

Should he keep ascending, the bench unit will only flourish and Boston, as a whole, will reap the benefits.

Should he flounder, however, the Celtics could once again find themselves rolling out another offensively inept second team while the front office could also be more in favor of shopping him throughout the year.