The Boston Celtics find themselves sinking deeper and deeper towards the unholy land that is the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings and, if their decision-makers don’t act soon, they could realistically find themselves enduring a similar, if not worse fate than the one they saw last season.
While sand is already falling, based on where we are on the year the hourglass has only just been flipped over, thus meaning the Cs still have some time to partake in much-needed shakeups between now and campaign’s end in an effort to help save their season from turning into a total failure.
That said, in order for the franchise to make said shakeups, the front office will have to be tactical in their approach. As many are already aware, this team doesn’t need just a few small tweaks here and there — they need sizeable makeovers to specific parts of their rotation.
A popular approach both fans and media outlets alike would like to see the C’s take is by means of attacking the trade market in order to scoop up some sound talents that could become available between now and February’s trade deadline.
Of course, before any deal can officially be made, trade talks must be held between all involved parties to ensure that their interests and intentions are known.
Naturally, it is expected that each organization will strive to hit specific topics throughout the process in an attempt to get exactly what they wish out of these discussions and, when it comes to the Boston Celtics, we believe that there are 3 key talking points they should look to broach during any potential upcoming negotiations:
Boston Celtics talking point No. 1) “Picks are more valuable than your player”
Now, due to the current state of the Boston Celtics, should they make a deal at some point this trade season the package being sent out on their end will almost certainly have to rely heavily on draft capital which, in turn, likely means that they’ll be looking to engage with rebuilding ball clubs who have talents that may not be ideal fits for a youth-movement.
For such organizations, draft picks are much more valuable than an aging player that takes away ample minutes from younger prospects on the roster.
Let’s take a popular trade target like Terrence Ross for example.
Wallowing away on the rebuilding Orlando Magic, considering where the franchise is at right now (7-32 on the year) the 26 minutes that the 30-year old is registering per game this season almost certainly would be better utilized on much younger players that could be key core contributors at some point down the road like, say, sophomore guard R.J. Hampton who’s only seeing 19.7 minutes of action on a nightly basis.
On the opposite side of the coin, the 26 minutes Ross currently finds himself logging are simply being wasted with the tanking Magic and, in turn, if dealt away he would be much more of a positive contributor on a team like the Celtics that actually is looking to win now.
While we can go on and on about the Magic’s current state, there are plenty of other examples of teams that could, and should view picks as being more valuable than some of their current players such as the Houston Rockets (Christian Wood), the OKC Thunder (Mike Muscala), and even the Indiana Pacers (Myles Turner, Domantas Sabonis, Justin Holiday… they need to dismantle their roster).
Boston must take advantage of their situations, be it by shelling out some capital or by hyping up this next talking point…
Boston Celtics talking point No. 2) “They just need a proper environment”
Alongside draft capital, one of the most highly coveted assets for rebuilding franchises are young and talented prospects and, while the Boston Celtics may not have any guaranteed stars outside of the likes of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, by all accounts they have a few youthful commodities that could certainly intrigue quite a number of organizations across the association.
Amongst this bunch are two players in Romeo Langford and Aaron Nesmith who, just a few short years ago, were considered to be some of the best prospects coming out of their respective classes and, in turn, were both projected and ultimately selected as lottery picks.
Though neither has yet to live up to their lofty draft statuses, both have managed to show flashes of just why they were revered so highly coming out of college.
For Langford, year three has been a nice step in the right direction after dealing with nagging injuries throughout his first two campaigns with the Celtics.
Through 30 games played the wing has showcased his potential of being a quality 3-and-D player in the association, especially when coming off the pine where, in said role, he is posting five points and three boards in 18 minutes on 37.5 percent shooting from distance.
Nesmith, on the other hand, came into year two with considerably high expectations after exploding onto the scene towards the end of last season, during August’s Summer League, and after playing impressively well in the preseason but, sadly, he has failed to live up to them on a consistent basis.
Still, there is the allure of his draft status just two years ago and his flashes of brilliance throughout his short career thus far.
Environment is key when it comes to getting the best out of young prospects and, though Nesmith and Langford are talented in their own right, at this stage in their development perhaps playing on a team looking to win now isn’t all that beneficial to their growth — in fact, one could argue it may be rather detrimental.
On a rebuilding team, they would be given the benefit of a much longer leash which, as a result, makes mistakes far more forgivable and easier to move past/ learn from.
As we’ve seen from recent deals such as the one that brought Jarrett Allen to the Cleveland Cavaliers, sometimes a rebuilding team taking a low-risk chance on a raw talent can do wonders for both the individual player and the organization.
Because of this, we feel the narrative of “ideal environment” could easily play a big role in negotiations this season.
Boston Celtics talking point No. 3) “Dennis Schroder has been a great starter”
When the Boston Celtics snagged Dennis Schroder in free agency this past summer on a one-year, $5.9 million deal, many deemed the move as being easily the best signing of the offseason.
Fast-forward nearly five months later and we find the veteran point guard having a fine year indeed but, sadly, not contributing as big of an impact for the team as many had hoped when they brought him aboard.
Now don’t get us wrong, Schroder is still producing rather well, boasting an overall stat-line of 16.5 points, 4.6 assists, 3.5 rebounds, and just shy of a steal per game. That said, he has not exactly been the 2019-20 version of himself that finished second in the running for Sixth Man of the Year, which is certainly something Boston could use coming off their lackluster pine.
This is arguably of little fault of his own, for the 28-year-old has constantly been rotating in and out of the starting lineup all season due to injuries and COVID-19 issues which, in turn, likely has had a negative impact on his psyche — don’t forget, basketball is just as much of a mental game as it is physical and an inconsistent role can easily mess with a player’s production.
Nonetheless, when he’s been serving as a bench player, it’s inarguable that he has not been nearly as effective when compared to his stints in the starting unit which, though may be a deterrent for Boston when it comes to their needs, it could be an intriguing talking point to bring up should Brad Stevens and co. be negotiating with franchises in desperate need of a starting point guard.
In 19 starts this year, Schroder has found himself putting up truly impressive averages of 19.5 points — which is 7.5 more than when coming off the bench — to go along with five assists and 3.8 rebounds on nearly 50 percent shooting from the floor.
With this, perhaps the C’s decision-makers can use this factoid, along with his steal of a salary as a bit of leverage should they be in discussions with point guard hungry teams like, say, the New York Knicks, Philadelphia 76ers, Los Angeles Clippers, the Denver Nuggets, etc.
As the losses continue to pile up it becomes more and more likely that we’ll be seeing Dennis Schroder involved in trade talks between now and the deadline to try and secure something of value for him before he hits free agency and likely walks away, leaving the Celtics with nothing.
This final talking point is a way for Boston to try and get the most out of a seemingly inevitable Schroder trade.