The Boston Celtics have been steamrolling through the Eastern Conference standings over the past few months, rising from as low as the 10th seed all the way to their current placement in the sixth seed thanks to their impressive 20-7 record since the start of January.
With a separation gap of just four wins between them and the top-seeded Miami Heat, the C’s have a high chance of leaping ahead of several teams in front of them within the standings between now and year’s end, and a lot of this optimism stems from the tremendous play from this ball club as a collective.
Yes, while Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown have proven to be the de facto leaders that we all penciled them in as being when coming into the year, it has been the steadily improving production from their supporting cast that has managed to spark their mid-season turnaround and, for some, said play may have even pushed their names into the “off the table” category when it comes to trade talks that are bound to take place this offseason.
With this in mind, today we at HH discuss 3 Boston Celtics players who have earned long-lasting tenures with the franchise:
Boston Celtics player No. 1) Grant Williams
Coming into the year, many–admittedly, including ourselves–were finding themselves questioning whether Grant Williams should be viewed as a long-term staple within the rotation or, simply put, a mere trade asset to be attached in a potential deal for someone else of greater potential.
Four months into 2021-22, we find that this inquiry can now be put to rest for, unless there’s a big-budget move creeping up on the horizon, the third-year big seems to be here to stay.
Despite being a smaller power forward (measures in at just 6-6), Williams has proven that he is capable of playing bigger than his size, especially on the defensive end of the ball where he can absorb contact in backdowns due to his rather muscular physique and has the ability to time an opponent’s shot attempt well enough to swat shots down at the rim when need be.
While he may not be the team’s biggest scoring threat, his presence on offense has also been undoubtedly felt all throughout the season, as the third-year pro finds himself serving as the C’s most trusty floor-spacer, converting his long-range attempts at a 43.7 percent clip.
Easily having himself the best season of his career, per 75 possessions the 23-year-old is posting 11.9 points, 5.1 rebounds, and just over a block per game while boasting a 63.4 effective field goal percentage.
Now, is Grant Williams a star in the making? No.
That said, every great team finds itself rostering several quality rotational talents and, based on his play this season, the big man could easily serve as such a commodity for the Celtics moving forward.
Boston Celtics player No. 2) Payton Pritchard
Though as a whole Payton Pritchard is seemingly having a down season when in comparison to his rookie campaign, upon digging a bit deeper one will find that this is largely due to inconsistent playing time within the rotation more than anything else.
On the year as a whole, in a measly 12.7 minutes a night the 24-year-old’s numbers of 5.2 points, 1.8 assists, and 1.7 rebounds are by no means eye-catchers, but his consistent long-range shooting clip of 37 percent and production when given extended run on the hardwood keeps us at the Houdini believing that the point guard is a true gem in the making for this C’s team.
Keep in mind that, when looking at counting stats, one must realize that they only actually tell half the story of how an individual is actually playing and, in the case of Pritchard, when he’s actually received a consistent and efficient amount of playing time he has easily managed to tap back into the rookie form that turned him into one of the more popular contributors found on Boston’s roster.
This year, when finding himself registering 18 or more minutes a night–a solid amount of time for an NBA role player–Pritchard is boasting impressive averages of 13.3 points, 3.7 assists, and 3.5 boards on a stellar 50 percent shooting from the floor and 44 percent shooting from deep.
A true energizer bunny type of player who is absolutely fearless on both ends of the ball, as the years begin to unwind on the young guard’s career we believe that we’ll eventually stand witness to a more active and utilized Payton Pritchard within the main rotation, especially if Brad Stevens and co. opt to ship out one of their other backcourt assets during this coming offseason.
Boston Celtics player No. 3) Robert Williams
Throughout his 2021-22 campaign, Robert Williams III has managed to transition himself from being a promising, yet raw prospect into a legitimate foundational piece for the Boston Celtics.
Since entering the league back in 2018, C’s fans have been patiently waiting to see the big man finally break out onto the scene and fill in as the franchise’s cornerstone down at the five and now, after inking his four-year, $54 million deal this past summer, it appears as though he’s finally arrived.
Through 50 games played this year, Williams is putting up solid per-game averages of 10 points, 9.7 rebounds, two assists, and 2.2 blocks on a stellar 72 percent shooting from the floor.
With him serving as the starting five, the shamrocks have been an all-out nightmare from a defensive standpoint, as they currently find themselves ranking second in the league in defensive rating which, frankly, has a lot to do with just how versatile the Time Lord is on the less glamorous side of the ball, as he has proven that he can step out on the perimeter and stay with his assignment almost as effectively as he can man the middle and protect the rim.
That said, it’s not like he hasn’t been a huge plus for Boston on offense this year as well, as he’s been the team’s go-to lob-threat as well as a true clean-up artist with his sensational put-back dunks.
Despite not having the deepest bag of tricks on this end of the floor, with what he can provide he has managed to muster up the highest offensive rating (143) and the second-highest offensive box plus-minus rating (2.2) on the C’s this year out of those who have logged at least 800 minutes.
Though he may not be an All-Star, the 24-year-old big man has proven to be an absolutely integral stud for this Boston Celtics team and, alongside Tatum and Brown, has gone on to help formulate arguably the best Big-3 in the entire league.
All things considered, a guy like Robert Williams III is someone almost any team will look to keep in tow for the long haul.