How Paul George and Mitchell Robinson supercharge the Celtics’ new defense

The Celtics haven’t had any issues being an elite defense in recent years, routinely finishing in the top 10. But they haven’t exactly excelled when it comes to defensive playmaking, which includes blocks, steals, deflections, and offensive fouls drawn. The idea behind it is that while ending a possession is good, jumpstarting your own is even better.

And the moves that Brad Stevens made this offseason show that the Celtics want to change that going forward. Mitchell Robinson was third among all big men last season in defensive playmaking, while Paul George was seventh among all off-ball guard and wing defenders.

Boston has several other players who could take a nice leap into these rankings with some of their havoc-creators on the second unit, like Jordan Walsh, Baylor Scheierman, Hugo Gonzalez, and Ron Harper Jr., stepping into even bigger roles this season.

Celtics can put elite defenders at every position

A healthy Jayson Tatum is also one of the better defenders in the entire league, as is Derrick White. Neemias Queta also showed that he belongs in that conversation last season. Meanwhile, Jaylen Brown was always up to the task of guarding the opposing team’s best player, but his off-ball defense left a lot to be desired, and he rarely created turnovers.

The new-look defense should be completely connected on a string, and they should be able to constantly cause mayhem for rival offenses. Beyond all of the excellent defenders, it’s also huge that Boston doesn’t really have any clear weaknesses on the defensive end either.

The NBA has become all about targeting mismatches, creating switches, and picking on inferior defenders. Celtics fans know this well, as the offense has become one of the best in the league at hunting advantages.

Celtics have very few liabilities on the defensive end

But it’s just as big an advantage to be able to largely avoid that problem on defense. Sure, teams will still hunt as best they can, but they won’t have great options. Payton Pritchard may get picked on for his size, and Sam Hauser may not be as athletic as some others. If Luka Garza is on the court, teams will surely attack him in the pick-and-roll.

But overall, it’s a sound unit from top to bottom, and even those “weaknesses” pale in comparison to what other teams have to work with. For his size and position, Pritchard is still a very solid defender, Hauser is underrated for his ability to guard, and Garza is at least an excellent defensive rebounder with a relentless motor.

So, not only should Boston be able to guard this season. Not only should they be able to avoid giving up mismatches that compromise the defense. But they should also be able to create turnovers that trigger the break and lead to easy looks going the other way.

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