The Boston Celtics have seen a tremendous amount of turnover on their roster this offseason. That includes at center, where it is unclear who will emerge as the starter to begin the season. If Jayson Tatum is to be believed, however, that decision may already have been made.
Center has been a position of strength for the Boston Celtics for the past few seasons. That isn't to say the team had Hall of Fame bigs in their prime manning the middle -- the likes of Bill Russell, Dave Cowens and Robert Parrish are not walking through the door -- but they had a rotation that unlocked what the team was trying to accomplish.
Kristaps Porzingis provided the combination of paint defense and 3-point shooting that remains rare in the NBA. Al Horford remains an elite switch defender and has become a truly knockdown 3-point shooter. When the Celtics needed a change of pace, Luke Kornet provided solid defense, rebounding and efficient play finishing. It was a great three-man group and it helped propel the franchise to great success over the last two seasons.
This summer, however, the franchise turned a new leaf. With Jayson Tatum likely missing the entire season due to an Achilles tear and the team's payroll being light years above the second tax apron, the Celtics made the call to tear down around Tatum and reset the books for next year.
That meant trading All-Defense guard Jrue Holiday and the aforementioned Porzingis. It meant allowing Kornet to walk in free agency. It meant not offering Horford a contract to return when he might be playing his final NBA season. There may still be cuts to come.
In the aftermath, therefore, the Celtics find themselves needing to completely reinvent their center rotation. They retained end-of-bench big men Xavier Tillman Sr. and Neemias Queta. They added minimum free agent bigs in stretch-5 Luka Garza and veteran Chris Boucher.
Who will start for Boston at center? Many expected the nod to eventually go to Chris Boucher, a longtime Toronto Raptors big man who best approximates the role of Porzingis over the last two seasons. A poor man's dollar tree version of Porzingis, perhaps, but something approximating shooting and shot-blocking.
Jayson Tatum thinks otherwise.
Jayson Tatum named the starting center
While appearing on ESPN's First Take show, Jayson Tatum was answering a question about how the roster will look after so many departures. In talking up the roster in place, he casually mentions that Neemias Queta will "probably be the starting center" this season.
That is a surprise, although perhaps it should not be. Queta was a monster this summer for his native Portugal in EuroBasket, putting up dominant double-double stat lines as the only viable topline player for Portugal. He has always rated well by advanced metrics as a shot-blocker and efficient play finisher, and perhaps is showing something to the Celtics coaching staff that suggests he has more to offer.
Tatum is obviously not the head coach, and plenty could change during Training Camp and the preseason. For now, however, it appears that Neemias Queta has the inside track to taking over the starting center position from Porzingis and Horford.
How he fills those shoes is yet to be written.