How many goose eggs will Carsen Edwards lay?

[Neurotic Guy]

Guy is not an NBA player..oversea future for him

Ah yes, the dreaded CS #hottake. No one hates Celtics players like Celtics fans.

I gave RJ Hunter a lot more time to prove himself unworthy than Carsen’s been given.  If Carsen is hitting 3s regularly in practice I think he’s definitely worth waiting for. RJ seemed to take eons to get his shot up (not as long as Amir Johnson, but...) compared to Carsen.  In time I think Edwards will be a valuable role player.

[Wretch]

We're being extremely hard on this kid because he raised our expectations playing against scrubs in the preseason and hit 9 3s in a quarter. He's a second round pick and there's a reason he was. He's not actually doing that badly all things considered. Here's how all the second round picks who have played at least 10 games and 10 minutes a game have fared thus far:



Paschall's been force fed minutes with the Dubs but other than him there's only a handful that have had the impact Carsen has had - a minor impact but he's got himself into the rotation.

Here's all the picks and how they've done so far. He hasn't set the world on fire but I'm not sure what people were expecting. As long as he keeps his head up and continues to try to impact the game in ways other than scoring he'll be fine eventually.

How dare you use facts to dispute a hot take.

[ozgod]

As long as he (...) continues to try to impact the game in ways other than scoring he'll be fine eventually.

Thing is, can he impact the game in ways other than scoring? I mean, he isn't even a good passer (he recorded more turnovers than assists last season at the college level). He can't play D or grab rebounds at an above average level cause he's 5'11". What's left for him to do other than scoring?

The point is that he has to get better at all those things. He has to figure out ways to impact the game if he's going to be successful in the NBA. Scoring is only one way to do that. If you're too small to defend people in the post, then get better at pressuring the ball and staying in front of people on the perimeter. If they shoot over you with your hand in their face then so be it. Rebounding is about positioning as well as height. Not to say Edwards will turn into Andre Drummond, but Eric Bledsoe is 6-1 and averages 5 rebounds a game. He can get better at passing the ball to the open man, especially since people still respect his jump shot even though he's not shooting that well. Dive for loose balls. Try to get steals, deflections. Hustle.

None of that is a guarantee that he will end up being good at any of that or that even if he does he will have an NBA future. Obviously it's a make-miss league and people who can shoot the ball are the most likely to have a future. But if your shot isn't falling then you gotta try other things to impact the game. I think trying to play tough defense is a start.

Also I'm not prepared to write rookies off on the basis of 1 1/2 months of play. Give the kid a year to find himself. He's a second round draft pick, it's not like our season will be made or broken by him anyway.

[SHAQATTACK]

how many years  did Young get , felt like a decade 

everybody has slumps ,  least he has proven he can shoot in a NBA game . 

[Celtics4ever]

at least he has proven he can shoot in a NBA game .

Shooting 36.8   % from three in TD garden

31.3% for the season from downtown.

https://www.espn.com/nba/player/_/id/4066407/carsen-edwards

3 double digit games out of 19  averaging 11 MPG

[BringToughnessBack]

Was this board live during Chauncey Billups time here? I would pay to be able to see comments from that time period. Thankfully us fans are not GM’s!

Are we really worried about our rookie taken in the 2nd round? Yes, some games he has been horrible but I am surely not worried in his 3 rd month in the league and some of those players in the draft look abysmal.

[Rosco917]

I know one thing. I'll never make a firm judgment on a player again based on Summer League or Preseason.

[nickagneta]

I know one thing. I'll never make a firm judgment on a player again based on Summer League or Preseason.

I have no idea why people do this. The best way to judge a player is to see them in game action that counts. Looking at NCAA video is infinitely better to judge a player than the Summer League or Preseason where the games are meaningless, there are no game plans, no rotations and the competition is so much less.

[LilRip]

I don’t know why he gets fairly consistent minutes. He’s a hard worker but is still a liability on defense. He also can’t hit open shots for the most part. I think Carsen needs a bunch more minutes in practice first.

Plus, I honestly hate it when Edwards AND Kanter see the floor at the same time (which is quite a lot. CBS runs either Kanter-Edwards or Timelord-Javonte). The eye test says we’re a pretty poor defensive unit when there are 2 liabilities out there.

[Hoopvortex]

I don’t know why he gets fairly consistent minutes.

In a way it’s simple: they think he’ll be helping them in the playoffs, and they’re putting him on that steep learning curve to give him a chance to get there.

He’s a hard worker but is still a liability on defense.

On the whole that’s what I see. But it’s unavoidable. He’s got to take his lumps - sometimes literally, if he’s going to be a plus defender. In addition to the aggressive play, he’s got good lower-body strength, anticipation, and acceleration off the floor. At 200 pounds he’s got the tools to be excellent on the ball at the point of attack.

He also can’t hit open shots for the most part.

He’s been good from distance, poor from closer in. He’s currently .313 from 2 and .313 from 3. Weird coincidence.

He hasn’t had to deal with NBA-level rim and paint protection up to this point in his career. It’s a big adjustment, or as the old vet saying goes, “Welcome to the NBA, kid.”

He’s 6/10 from long midrange, which if it’s real is a big asset. Mostly NBA teams are conceding those shots, and he’s got the skill right now to get those shots off the dribble in either direction.

As mentioned, he’s .313 from deep, which is mediocre on the surface, but that represents 15/48. A useful quick and dirty technique for evaluating the sample size is: add or subtract one more make; then add or subtract two. The sample size is less reliable if the percentage changes a lot when you do that.

So, 16/48 is .333, which is acceptable shooting. 17/48 is .354, which is about league average. Yes, of course you could subtract and get some horrible percentages, but the point is that the actual % should be eaten with a grain of salt - there’s a very good chance that he’ll finish the year above league average, and despite the inevitable rookie adjustments.

He shot .353 in November, btw. I would not bet against him.

Plus, I honestly hate it when Edwards AND Kanter see the floor at the same time

We all have our tastes. I, for one, cannot stand even tiny amounts of cilantro in my food. I get it.

More to the point, perhaps, it might be worth thinking about why the coaching staff is doing that, because you’re right that they are.

It’s also true that Edwards is usually on the floor with Jayson Tatum, who’s got a lot of gravity, and is seeing more doubles and blitzes this year. That means that both Kanter and Carsen can get more open shots (the uptick in Jayson’s playmaking is welcome!) and Kanter can get more offensive boards (he’s currently one of the league leaders).

(which is quite a lot. CBS runs either Kanter-Edwards or Timelord-Javonte).

True about pairing Kanter/Edwards, less true about Green/Williams. Green is not getting rotation minutes.  Rob’s most-used lineup is subbing for Theis with the starters.

The eye test says we’re a pretty poor defensive unit when there are 2 liabilities out there.

His most-used lineup is Edwards/Wanamaker/Tatum/Ojeleye/Kanter.  Currently that group is 1.19 points per possession on offense, and .95 on defense. Excellent defense, outstanding net. Kanter takes a lot of crap for his defense, but I’d just point out that team defense has a lot of moving parts, and without going through his merits and demerits on that end, he’s at least a strong defensive rebounder. You have to get the ball.

[droopdog7]

As long as he (...) continues to try to impact the game in ways other than scoring he'll be fine eventually.

Thing is, can he impact the game in ways other than scoring? I mean, he isn't even a good passer (he recorded more turnovers than assists last season at the college level). He can't play D or grab rebounds at an above average level cause he's 5'11". What's left for him to do other than scoring?

The point is that he has to get better at all those things. He has to figure out ways to impact the game if he's going to be successful in the NBA. Scoring is only one way to do that. If you're too small to defend people in the post, then get better at pressuring the ball and staying in front of people on the perimeter. If they shoot over you with your hand in their face then so be it. Rebounding is about positioning as well as height. Not to say Edwards will turn into Andre Drummond, but Eric Bledsoe is 6-1 and averages 5 rebounds a game. He can get better at passing the ball to the open man, especially since people still respect his jump shot even though he's not shooting that well. Dive for loose balls. Try to get steals, deflections. Hustle.

None of that is a guarantee that he will end up being good at any of that or that even if he does he will have an NBA future. Obviously it's a make-miss league and people who can shoot the ball are the most likely to have a future. But if your shot isn't falling then you gotta try other things to impact the game. I think trying to play tough defense is a start.

Also I'm not prepared to write rookies off on the basis of 1 1/2 months of play. Give the kid a year to find himself. He's a second round draft pick, it's not like our season will be made or broken by him anyway.

I'll jump in and add my two cents.  For full disclosure, I've been a doubter even after the successful preseason. 

To me it's not what he can add in addition to scoring.  I don't think it will ever be much given his obvious limitations.  He could certainly get better over time of course.

To me, the question is whether his offense in generally fits this (or any) team.  Carsen Edwards is essentially a gunner, who took and often made shots from all over the floor.  In college he didn't hesitate because he was clearly the best option on the floor.

The NBA is different of course,.  Everyone can score.  So Carsen is having to dial it back, and I think that is the biggest reason for his struggles.  While he can certainly make long threes and get really hot, the team can get much better shots.

So where does Carsen fit into that system?  If we're asking him to do things that are really in his make up, then what do you have left?  If you're just going to whittling away at what the guy is, what's the point.

Now, if Carsen doomed?  Maybe not.  He could definitely be an eddie house type guy.  But Eddie knew his role.  Stand and wait for an open shot.  He never dribbles and he didn't take shots outside the offense. 

[PAOBoston]

I think Carsen could kill it in Europe and make a ton of money there. Not sure he has a legit NBA future.

As for the now, he’s been awful and quite frankly just needs plying time. They need to send this guy to get some minutes. Frankly, they should do the same with G Williams too. He’s been awful, especially the past few weeks. These guys need a confidence boost right now and some playing time to get back in rhythm.

[CelticsElite]

Looks like we got another one

[Rondo9]

Why are people being over reactive?

[Hoopvortex]

Why are people being over reactive?

Ah, the fickleness of the Boston sports fan.