The Boston Celtics had a lot to be excited about from their preseason debut against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Sure, it's a game that doesn't count, but Boston demonstrated exactly what Joe Mazzulla's vision is for this season after trading Jaylen Brown.
The primary way in which they did this was through their dominant offensive rebounding, which basically erased the fact that they didn't shoot well from the field. However, what also stood out was the fact that their trio of wings - Baylor Scheierman, Hugo Gonzalez, and Jordan Walsh - all looked fantastic.
All three of them scored between 15 or 16 points while adding smart decision-making, three-point shooting, and stellar defense. Even more impressive is that they don't play similar styles, but they all flowed together to keep the Cavaliers at an arms' length.
On the surface, that could be trouble for Sam Hauser down the line if it's a sign of things to come, but no matter how Boston handles that situation, their individual performances are exactly what the Celtics want to see from them because that could be exactly what helps mitigate the loss of Brown.
They could replace Brown's *impact*, not talent
None of those three are as talented overall as Brown is as a player, but in all fairness, not a lot of players in the NBA are as talented as Brown is period. Trying to replace his talent is a lost cause, but it's not like the Celtics weren't aware of this when they made the deal.
They believed that the skillsets that Scheierman, Gonzalez, and Walsh all possess could mitigate Brown's overall impact. They can't replace the scoring gravity Brown had at his peak with Boston, but being multi-faceted can definitely take care of any holes Brown may have left.
Analytics were never Brown's friend in Boston, which is why replacing his impact may be just as easy said as done. Having said that, no one is trying to take away from what he did in the decade he played for the Celtics because he was awesome both on the court and as a leader. This isn't a "Jaylen Brown is overrated" rant because he's not. Rather, this is an argument to support the notion that Brown was replaceable.
If the Celtics didn't think that way, it would have made him harder to trade. The extra wrinkle here is that these three aforementioned wings played a part in how the Celtics did well without Jayson Tatum. Now they're taked with more or less doing the same, only this time, they're tasked with doing to for Brown.
Because we have evidence suggesting they can because they did last year, there's good reason to believe from their play this season that Boston will be just fine.
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