The Boston Celtics' offseason had its epic twists and turns, from trading Jaylen Brown for Paul George to prying Mitchell Robinson away from the New York Knicks. What's flown under the radar this summer has been their pattern of keeping their guys on team-friendly deals, like Neemias Queta, Jordan Walsh, and Ron Harper Jr.
Key emphasis on Harper here. Queta and Walsh played bigger roles than Harper did, but Boston did a pretty solid job of keeping his impact on the down low. While no one's saying he's more valuable than Queta or Walsh, Harper proved in spurts just how good he was when the Celtics asked more of him.
This showed itself in spurts, but they were loud enough that it was clear Boston wants to see what they have in him to the fullest extent. It started with their second matchup against Houston, where Harper was not only asked to do his part on offense, but was also tasked with covering Kevin Durant.
The end result? A blowout victory.
Look, every once in a while, we see an obscure Celtic have his spontaneous awesome game that many read into. Harper's semi-breakout different though. Especially when it had become clear that when given more time, Harper could bring it even against the league's best.
He looked even better in their second matchup against San Antonio, a game Boston just barely lost. Harper's impact on the game was a big reason the Celtics were in it until the end against the eventual Western Conference champion. It wasn't just that he was making shots, but that he was consistently making the right play.
Lastly, Harper got the start in the regular season finale in a meaningless game for the Celtics, but a meaningful game for the Magic. As everyone knows, the Celtics won anyway, and it would not have happened without Harper.
The sample size isn't that big, but when Boston counted on Harper, he delivered for them. Not always (see Game 7, Round 1 vs. Philadelphia), but Harper was impressive enough that the Celtics wanted to make sure to keep him, but on a very team-friendly deal.
Oh, and Harper was also involved in one of Boston's best highlights of the season, for what it's worth.
I haven't even harped on the biggest twist of all.
The commonality: Harper broke out specifically in games Brown didn't play
Well, now ain't that coincidence? In all the games I referenced above, Brown either didn't play in them or didn't play a good chunk of it. He played against San Antonio, but was notoriously kicked out after an altercation with a referee.
And yet, the Celtics did just fine without him. Boston had their reasons for why they traded Brown, but a theoretical reason that's slowly been bubbling to the surface is that the team withstood his absence, with much of that being because of Harper.
Don't get this twisted. Harper is not as good as Brown is, but he's good enough that the Celtics believe he can do his part in replacing Brown brought, even if it he can't do it by himself. He's not the star Brown is, but he is good enough to be part of the collective to fill the void for him.
Better than that, Boston has him under their control for four years.
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