The Celtics did their best to replace their top three centers from last season, and given the budget they had to work with, they did pretty well. They got a solid rim-protecting big man with above-the-rim finishing in Neemias Queta, a workaholic with nice touch and a three-ball off the bench in Luka Garza, and a proven vet at the deadline in Nikola Vucevic.
They have most of their bases covered at the center position, but one thing that’s missing is scheme versatility on defense. All three of the Celtics’ centers play drop coverage, and not much more.
None of these three is switching onto guards or wings, blitzing handlers beyond the three-point arc, or generally even meeting them at the level. They are dropping into the paint, turning into a rim protector, and hoping that the primary defender is able to beat the screen.
For the most part, it’s a sound, proven approach that most teams employ and most big men work well with. But in the playoffs, it’s great to have options, and one that made the Celtics’ defense great for years was their ability to switch everything with Al Horford playing the five.
Celtics can employ small-ball with Tatum at center
Al is gone, but the Celtics do have a new variation of small-ball that involves Jayson Tatum at center. We saw it at times down the stretch of the regular season, and we routinely saw JT guard centers during Boston's title run, but we’ve only seen it briefly in end-of-quarter situations through two playoff games.
It’s not something they want to lean on, as it creates obvious size disadvantages, but in spurts, this is a solid button to press. Tuesday’s Game 2 felt like the right time to give that look a try, as the 76ers were carving up the drop coverage and Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe were making it rain on pull-up threes.
Celtics have to have a switch-everything option
Boston was getting little from either of Queta or Vooch, and the Celtics were really struggling on both ends of the floor. It would have been interesting to see what a unit with Tatum at the five could have done to possibly shift the pace and speed things up, while playing five-out offense with guys who can all shoot and attack closeouts.
On the other end, it would give them the freedom to switch every action as Tatum can simply slide right onto Maxey (as he has done plenty in this series) and Derrick White can battle with Andre Drummond, Adem Bona, or whoever is setting the screen with a guy like Jordan Walsh or Jaylen Brown ready to take the bigger player as he settles into the paint.
It’s hard to win without size these days, but the way Tatum has been rebounding and protecting the rim since his return, this is a viable option. It would be nice to save it for more of a “break glass in case of emergency” situation, but these are the playoffs after all, and they should leave no stone unturned.
Don’t be surprised if we see some of this in the near future. Maybe Joe thinks he can survive this series without it, and he's probably right. But at some point, likely against a team like the Knicks or Cavaliers, this is a card that Mazzulla will have to play.
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