The Celtics are a first-class organization, almost from top to bottom, but one of the things that doesn’t get nearly enough attention or credit is how good they’ve been at identifying talent and developing young players.
We’ve seen multiple late first and second-round draft picks make major strides over the past few seasons in Jordan Walsh, Baylor Scheierman, and Hugo Gonzalez. And we’ve also seen players plucked off the scrap heap and turned into meaningful contributors in Boston like Neemias Queta, Ron Harper Jr., Luka Garza, and others.
The player development has been a linchpin for recent success, creating a massive advantage over the competition, and a huge part of that is assistant coach Tyler Lashbrook. Lashbrook was hired in 2023 as a player development coach, led the Maine Celtics for the 2024-25 season, and joined Mazzulla’s bench in Boston last season.
Tyler is great. HC in Maine 24-25. Back in Boston this year.
— Jack Simone (@JackSimoneNBA) May 22, 2026
This is what Hugo Gonzalez had to say earlier this year:
“He’s an amazing coach, an amazing person… It’s hard to catch [up with] the game when you come from overseas… He has made my life easier in that.” https://t.co/Vyr6VKVmls
But now, the 34-year-old whiz kid may be on the move as the Trail Blazers have identified him as a candidate for their open head coaching vacancy, and according to Jake Fischer, he has advanced to the latter stages of the search and will receive an in-person interview for the job.
Celtics coaching staff needs a boost
Joe Mazzulla is likely about to win the Coach of the Year Award, but his playoff performances have left some things to be desired in recent years. And now, it looks like there’s a real chance the staff takes another major hit with the potential departure of Lashbrook.
In the last few seasons, the Celtics’ staff has been ripped apart, with Ime Udoka, Will Hardy, and Charles Lee all sitting in head coach seats around the league. On top of that, Damon Stoudamire went to coach in college, Jeff Van Gundy left his advisory role for bigger things, and other key pieces of the organization have gone their own way.
The staff is still strong, but they need to keep replenishing the talent. I’ve called for them to bring in a veteran like Terry Stotts or Mike Budenholzer, and would also love to see a former player like Rajon Rondo added to the staff. They need some outside voices and unique perspectives in the room.
Their needs will be even greater if they lose another key piece in Lashbrook, a rising star who has done wonders for some of the young players on the squad. The Celtics expect to be picking late in the draft, or not at all, for years to come, so the ability to get more out of less will only continue to be paramount.