A lot was made about the Celtics’ moves last offseason, shedding lots of talent and salary. They leaned heavily into an unproven roster built up with recent draft picks and minimum signings who hadn’t proven much in the NBA. All season long, those players proved the doubters wrong, but that disappeared once the playoffs started.
That baffling decision by Joe Mazzulla to abandon his bench has warped the sentiment around a lot of those players. Brad Stevens hammered home the point in his presser, saying the personnel wasn’t good enough, but on the margins, I disagree strongly, and while it may not have been good enough to win a title this year, there’s no reason to think it can’t be in the future.
Neemias Queta, Jordan Walsh, Baylor Scheierman, Hugo Gonzalez, Ron Harper Jr., and Luka Garza all proved they belong in the league, and maybe it was too much to ask those players to be ready to contribute in the playoffs, but that was never the plan going into the season.
It shouldn’t be lost that the Celtics got breakouts from all of those players, and they should only keep improving and growing their confidence. They are all on bargain deals, and the Cs should lean into those players, continue to develop them, and use their depth and value contracts as an advantage in team-building.
Playoffs showing the importance of cheap depth
When you look at the teams still playing, obviously, the top-end talent sticks out, but every team is getting big contributions from young or unheralded players. The Spurs have given Dylan Harper Jr. a big role, they trust Carter Bryant, and they’ve elevated and empowered Julian Champagnie.
The Thunder are relying on Ajay Mitchell, Jared McCain, and others. The Knicks have resuscitated Landry Shamet and are getting great minutes out of him. These teams have players on bargain contracts playing major roles, and that’s what it takes to win in the modern edge: maximizing the margins.
Boston has already done the hard part. They’ve found these guys and developed them. Now, they need to trust their process even more. Some of these guys may be trade chips, and not everyone can play, but the Celtics should maximize the roster and build their depth yet again, just as they did this season.Â
Take some of the load off the stars in the regular season and establish the young guys even more. Only next time around, don’t lose that trust and confidence once the playoffs begin. We’re seeing players like Walsh, Scheierman, and Hugo make a difference all over the league in the postseason, and how vital that is, now the Celtics need to capitalize.
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