Many are questioning Brad Stevens at the moment following his latest decision. It makes sense that Boston Celtics fans are infuriated by the Jaylen Brown trade because of both the deal itself and what's to happen afterward. The ongoing chaos overshadows the fact that Stevens has brought in two players who played a major role in the Celtics' last two embarrassing playoff failures.
The acquisition of Paul George overshadowed the fact that the Celtics made a big splash when they poached Mitchell Robinson away from the New York Knicks. Trading Brown will make it hard to enjoy the rest of the offseason, but the fact of the matter is that Stevens is assembling an annoyingly good team featuring two players who annoyed the Celtics quite heavily in the last two years.
Does it mean the Celtics are a better team than they were yesterday? TBD, but based on how George and Robinson played into the Celtics' early postseason demises, you can make the case that they are both ezcellent addition for what Boston wants to do.
Paul George annoyed the Celtics on both sides of the floor
George is one of those NBA players that is certainly overpaid, but his fee overshadows the fact that he still is a game-changer. He proved exactly that when the Celtics went up against the Sixers. George's All-Star and All-NBA days are firmly behind him, but he proved his worth against Boston, as his defense on both Brown and Jayson Tatum disrupted Boston's flow.
That played a role in how Philly not only took the momentum in the series, but also in how Boston never got it back.
George also had his stand out games offensively, as his spot-up three-point shooting also played a decisive role in the Sixers beating the Celtics for the first time in 43 years.
George is in the twilight of his NBA career, but he proved he can be an annoyingly good player. Think of him as a Derrick White-esque game-changer. No, he's not the same player, but still can be valuable piece on a good team.
Mitchell Robinson swung games against the Celtics
The Brown trade unfortunately got in the way of the Celtics not only bettering themselves but also worsening the Knicks by taking away one of their most valued pieces. Celtics fans should remember Robinson by heart because his presence on the boards not only created extra possessions for the Knicks but prevented Boston from getting them in their playoff series last year.
(Highlights vs. Boston starts at 2:48 and ends at 6:27)
It's not only how the Knicks won the series, but also how they kept coming back in games many thought were over early on. There's no telling who will get to start for Boston - Neemias Queta will probably keep his spot - but Robinson gives the Celtics the game-changing big they sorely lacked.
No one's saying the Celtics are contenders, but it's fair to say that they haven't really taken of a step back. By all accounts, Robinson change so much about their frontcourt by himself, and while George might not be what he was, he still is a good enough player that he is not a hole opponents can exploit.
Celtics fans, I understand everything that's going on right now. These next few weeks - hell, maybe even the next few months - are going to be hard to digest, but even with Brown gone, Boston is still in a good place with who they have added.
No one's saying they are contenders. We're just saying give it a chance.
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