We've talked plenty about the prospect of the Boston Celtics getting their hands on Giannis Antetokounmpo, but we haven't discussed much about what else Boston would have to do should they get him. They obviously want to build the best team around him, but that also requires building a team tailor-made for him to thrive, i.e., getting a stretch five.
Tim Bontemps, Tim MacMahon, and Brian Windhorst discussed this on "The Hoop Collective" when talking about Giannis' fit with Boston, where they brought up bringing back Nikola Vucevic (highly unlikely), Kristaps Porzingis (bigger risk than ever), Al Horford (will have to play fewer minutes), and Antetokounmpo's ex-teammate, Brook Lopez (same ordeal as Horford).
The Celtics don't even necessarily have to target them specifically, as they could depend on Luka Garza (they brought him up as well), and even if he's coming off a disastrous season in Milwaukee, Myles Turner fits that bill.
But the point still stands that Giannis finally reached that level once the Bucks gave him more floor-spacing every which way. That was the year they brought in Lopez in 2018, but they also added Ersan Ilyasova, and Nikola Mirotic. Antetokounmpo and floor-spacing simply go together like peanut butter and jelly.
Alternatively, Giannis could play exclusively at center
Those aforementioned big men bring floor spacing, but they also bring their red flags. A couple years ago, adding one or a few of them in would have been a no-brainer, but Father Time is undefeated. Alternatively, Boston could run the Greek Freak at center.
He is one of the most physicall imposing players in the NBA who has spent time at the five. It's not like surrounding him with elite spacing starts and ends with big men who can fill that role. The Celtics can also have their wings do it, and they have a plenthora of those on the roster just itching to play.
But there is a flaw in this plan to. Running Antetokounmpo at center would also slash into Neemias Queta's minutes after he just had a breakout season. Now, he and Giannis would definitely have some fit issues, as neither are floor-spacers. Really in general, it's hard to see how those two could work but Queta proved enough to deserve a consistent role in Boston.
For as dominant as Antetokounmpo is, his unique skillset as a player requires the right roster makeup to make things work. If Boston gets him, then they must think about the rest of the roster. Because the Bucks thrived with putting multiple floor-spacing big men next to Giannis, and because Boston has their own success stories with stretch bigs, they'd be hard pressed not to try to add another one.
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