According to Keith Smith of Spotrac, the Boston Celtics are working out former Portland Trail Blazer and Phoenix Sun Nassir Little. The 6-foot-5 forward also has workouts scheduled with the Sacramento Kings, Miami Heat, and Golden State Warriors. At 24 years old, Little is preparing to enter his sixth season in the NBA.
Last season, Little appeared in 45 games in his first year with the Suns, playing 10.2 minutes per contest. He averaged 3.4 points, 1.7 rebounds, and 0.5 assists while shooting 46.0% from the floor and 30.0% from beyond the three-point line.
Phoenix chose not to bring him back, but the Celtics working out Little it way more intriguing than at first glance.
Celtics working out Nassir Little is the right kind of risk
Obviously, Little hasn’t panned out in each of his previous spots. His inconsistent offensive game has held him back from being a consistent face in an NBA rotation, but that’s why he’s now on a training camp deal.
Free agent wing Nassir Little has/had workouts with the Boston Celtics, Golden State Warriors, Miami Heat and Sacramento Kings, a league source told @spotrac.
— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) September 16, 2024
Oddly enough, that’s exactly why the Celtics are right to take a chance on Little. His offensive game needs work, but he’s already a quality player on the defensive end. That’s the type of player they can work with.
Just take Jaden Springer and Xavier Tillman as prime examples. Both players are great on the defensive end of the floor. Tillman helped the Celtics shut down Luka Doncic in the NBA Finals, and Springer has proven to be an elite perimeter defender.
Little may not be on their level, but he’s an NBA-level defender, and that’s something the Celtics can work with.
It’s not always easy to teach players to shoot threes at a high level, but the Celtics have worked closely with the likes of Tillman, Springer, and others on their shots. Derrick White is another example, as he never shot 38% from deep before he got to Boston.
Since Little is already a solid player on defense (and an above average rebounder for his position), the Celtics can simply work with him on his shot and see what they can accomplish.
Any player any team brings in for training camp is an imperfect player. If they were good enough, they would already be on a roster. However, adding a solid defender who needs help on offense is better than adding a player who has the opposite issue.
Oftentimes, it’s easier to help a player improve their shot instead of their defense. Just look at guys like Brook Lopez and Chris Bosh. They weren’t great shooters early in their careers, but they worked at it, and it came around. It’s far more rare to hear about bad defenders who turned into good defenders.