The playoffs weren’t kind to Neemias Queta, and left many Celtics fans looking to see the team address the center position this offseason. While that’s probably not a bad idea, everyone needs to see the big picture when it comes to Neemey, and not completely cast him aside because of one less-than-stellar playoff series.
Queta broke out in first year as starter
Neemy was playing on two-way deals to start his career. He was discarded by the Kings and added to the Maine Celtics. He has come a long way to the point where he was elevated to a full-time contract in Boston, but this season was still the first time he has been part of an everyday NBA rotation.
He earned the starting center job, and he ran with it all season. He was one of the biggest bright spots on the team, proving to be able to anchor a defense and make an impact as a rim runner. To have that kind of season in his first real taste of NBA action is a huge plus and a great sign for his future.
Plenty of room for Queta to improve
Queta is still just 26 years old, and there’s no reason to think he won’t continue to improve. The strides he took this year were incredible, and now he just needs to keep getting better at the things he’s already good at, learn from his mistakes, and make a few tweaks. We saw the Celtics develop another raw, young center a few years ago in Robert Williams, and there’s no reason Big Neem can’t follow a similar path.
He needs to learn to play without fouling - that was abundantly clear in the playoffs. He needs to gain more discipline on both ends, setting better screens, rolling harder, and spacing the floor better. But there’s no reason to think he won’t continue to grow this offseason and can come back with more confidence, ability, and experience, ready to take another leap as a starting center for the Celtics.
Neemy’s contract a great boon for Celtics
The Celtics have a team option for $2.67 million for next season on Queta, an absolute steal for a starting center. That contract allows the Celtics to build out their depth and use Neemy as part of a rotation at the position. If he takes another step forward next season, that’s great, and they can extend him - hopefully, on a team-friendly deal.
If not, he’s still, at the very least, a valuable backup and a strong regular-season innings eater that the team can rely on for big minutes on a cheap deal going forward. He may not be a perfect player, and he may not be the long-term solution. But he could be. And it costs almost nothing to keep maximizing the return on the bet they made on Queta back in 2023 when they first signed him to a two-way deal.
Most teams don’t have a Joel Embiid
The other important thing to remember when it comes to Queta is that in Games 4-7, Boston was going up against one of the best centers in the league. Most teams don’t have a guy like Joel Embiid who can take guys down to the block or on the outside, score at all three levels, put the ball on the floor, and draw fouls. When Joel has it going as he did, there are only a handful of bigs around the league who even stand a chance.
Don’t get me wrong, Neemy had his share of issues going against Adem Bona and Andre Drummond as well, but all things considered, he did an admirable job battling against Embiid, who looked like he had rediscovered his MVP form from a few years ago.
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