Could Langford be a player?

[Alleyoopster]

After what we've seen (or not seen) I thought for sure drafting Langford could turn out to be a worthless pick for the Celtics.

His performance on Sunday has me starting to believe otherwise. He only scored three points, but he surely made an impact on the game. He forced Charlotte to make difficult passes and interrupted their shooting rhythm.

On offense he's already known as a slasher. This could prove to be an impressive weapon if he can combine that with up tempo passing skills. Especially now that the Celtics are working together as a cohesive unit.

Anyone else holding out hope he'll be able to contribute this year and beyond?
 

[Celtics2021]

Welcome on board the Langford hype train, where some of us have been for awhile!

Yes, Langford has always been a slasher with passing skills.  His defense was impressive in spurts last year, which was a nice thing to see as a rookie.  I do think his shot will eventually be reliable enough (nothing stellar, but near league average.) His Covid bout couldn’t have come at a worse time, but I think he’ll be the 9th man in Stevens 9-man playoff rotation this year if he doesn’t have any further setbacks.

[Goldstar88]

Romeo was a 5 star recruit and a top 10 prospect in the nation coming out of high school. Not Realy sure why people are surprised that he knows how to play basketball at a high level.

[SHAQATTACK]

He seems to have a lot natural instincts and seems to read plays like Smart and Timelord. .

He just needs court minutes and millions of practice jumpers ....making shot is phun practice ,  so I expect him show a marked improvement this time next year.

I fully believe this guy is not another James Young . 

He looks like he belongs in the NBA.

[Jiri Welsch]

The short answer is yes.

The "issue" (besides his injury history) with Langford is he likely won't ever become an All-Star talent like Brown and Tatum. But Langford definitely has the pedigree to become a solid NBA player and stay in the league through a few contracts.

Before the draft players comparisons to Langford were often Evan Turner types.

[gouki88]

He really beefs up our bench if he can provide slashing, drop-off passes, corner 3s all in addition to his strong defence. Our playoff rotation could look something like this:
Kemba / PP
Smart / Langford
Brown / Fournier
Tatum / Thompson
Williams / Kornet

[Sophomore]

People are disappointed that he hasn’t really played, and that’s understandable. Getting a player out of that pick is really important to the team’s future. What I don’t get are some of the comments people make that he’s slow or not athletic, doesn’t move well. As others have pointed out, he was a blue chip recruit out of high school. When he’s healthy, his physical talent is undeniable. First time I saw him on the court I also thought he had a solid understanding of some key pick and roll dynamics; he looked like he belongs on an NBA court. Only real questions are: can he stay healthy, and can he develop his jumper. If the answer to both is yes, he can be a very nice player.

[nickagneta]

I think he could not only be a player, but I think he could be quite special and be highly impactful, much like what Timelord has shown this year.

Timelord fell because he played in a two center system in college his 2nd year with a horrible college coach, and more importantly, due to medical questions. Now, his third year, things just gelled, the game slowed down and he showed the type of stud he was in high school and his freshman year in college.

Romeo fell in the draft because of medical reasons and questions regarding his shooting in college. But his shot was effected by wrist problems that he played through for a year rather than get it fixed. But now, those wrist issues are gone. If he gets his shot back to the way it was in high school, with his raw talent, his BBIQ, his athleticism and his physical attributes, much like Timelord, he could explode onto the scene next year.

I have confidence he will. I think when we look back on Romeo, time will show it was another great Ainge draft pick.

[coco]

The “bar” I have made for Langford is pretty low.
....Langford needs to be available for the next 90 to 100 games.
Then, I’ll raise the “bar” a bit higher.

[footey]

He really beefs up our bench if he can provide slashing, drop-off passes, corner 3s all in addition to his strong defence. Our playoff rotation could look something like this:
Kemba / PP
Smart / Langford
Brown / Fournier
Tatum / Thompson
Williams / Kornet

Looked good until you had Thompson as back up 4; he is back up 5, and drop Kornet except special situations (want to play stretch 5).

[coco]

He really beefs up our bench if he can provide slashing, drop-off passes, corner 3s all in addition to his strong defence. Our playoff rotation could look something like this:
Kemba / PP
Smart / Langford
Brown / Fournier
Tatum / Thompson
Williams / Kornet

Looked good until you had Thompson as back up 4; he is back up 5, and drop Kornet except special situations (want to play stretch 5).

To be honest, I didn’t realize TT was such a black hole.  I was happy to get his toughness, hustle and rebounding; but he is no low post scorer. 

[gouki88]

He really beefs up our bench if he can provide slashing, drop-off passes, corner 3s all in addition to his strong defence. Our playoff rotation could look something like this:
Kemba / PP
Smart / Langford
Brown / Fournier
Tatum / Thompson
Williams / Kornet

Looked good until you had Thompson as back up 4; he is back up 5, and drop Kornet except special situations (want to play stretch 5).

Maybe, but I think Brad like Kornet, and Thompson might struggle for minutes and conditioning. We’ll probably see some combo of TT, Kornet, Grant and Semi in the playoffs based on matchups

[Celtics4ever]

We’ll probably see some combo of TT, Kornet, Grant and Semi in the playoffs based on matchups

If we are playing Grant there is 99.9% chance we are losing that matchup.

[Celtics2021]

He really beefs up our bench if he can provide slashing, drop-off passes, corner 3s all in addition to his strong defence. Our playoff rotation could look something like this:
Kemba / PP
Smart / Langford
Brown / Fournier
Tatum / Thompson
Williams / Kornet

Brad’s playoff rotations are typically 9 players.  Often it’s really 8 guys and then a rotating 9th guy based on matchups or how the series has gone.  Assuming Thompson ultimately recovers, Kornet will be dropped.  If they want to go with a bigger player behind Tatum (which is reasonable), it will be Grant or Semi.  I think that Romeo and Pritchard will be fighting for that rotation spot over the next 6 weeks.

[Vermont Green]

There was an earlier discussion on Kevin Porter Jr.  A lot of people were up in arms that the Celtics didn't get in on him when he was available.  But many of those same people view Langford as a lost cause.  I see a lot of similarities and some big differences.  Both are 6'-4" athletic SGs who are very young, have a lot of potential, but so far have not fulfilled that promise.  The big difference is why, Porter is kind of a head case whereas Langford is a solid citizen but has had injury problems.

I think Langford "is" an NBA player.  He has demonstrated that.  To me, the level of ability has been established.  The issue is durability.  The question then is "Will Langford be durable enough to be an NBA Player".  That is TBD.