Am I the only one who thinks Hayward is a better defender than Crowder?

[liam]

I think that Hayward is a much better defender than Jay Crowder. I haven't seen this mentioned. Hayward is faster,  he can pick up guards or guard big wings. Hayward is much longer and faster. Hayward is a huge upgrade to this Celtics squad.

[CelticsElite]

Crowder was disappointing against lebron

[jpotter33]

He probably was last year, because Jae took a big step back defensively last year.

I think Jae's D was exaggerated around the league a bit, and I think he's a good step below Smart and AB on the whole. Where on the other hand Hayward's D is underrated, similar to Pierce's D in his prime.

Overall, I think we'll actually be a better defensive team this year than last year, and I think it's largely a lateral move defensively from Jae to Hayward, with a major upgrade offensively.

[liam]

He probably was last year, because Jae took a big step back defensively last year.

I think Jae's D was exaggerated around the league a bit, and I think he's a good step below Smart and AB on the whole. Where on the other hand Hayward's D is underrated, similar to Pierce's D in his prime.

Overall, I think we'll actually be a better defensive team this year than last year, and I think it's largely a lateral move defensively from Jae to Hayward, with a major upgrade offensively.

I watched Hayward switching on to Curry in the WCF and he could keep up with him ( as well as anyone can...) and I watched him guard Durant. Hayward had a really good series against the GSWs. I like the way The Celtics stack up against the Warriors this year.

[PAOBoston]

He probably was last year, because Jae took a big step back defensively last year.

I think Jae's D was exaggerated around the league a bit, and I think he's a good step below Smart and AB on the whole. Where on the other hand Hayward's D is underrated, similar to Pierce's D in his prime.

Overall, I think we'll actually be a better defensive team this year than last year, and I think it's largely a lateral move defensively from Jae to Hayward, with a major upgrade offensively.

I think people have difficulty separating value vs actual player worth when it comes to Crowder. Crowder is a nice role player on a great contract.

I almost lost my mind when the national media made it sound like Crowder was some sort of top 10 small forward last week.

[Diggles]

He probably is better vs 2 and maybe quicker 3s.   But he may not be again bigger 3's and some 4's/   

[coffee425]

Jae is a louder defender than Gordon.

That is,  he stomps around and screams after every play.

But they're probably comparable. It only matters that you're not a minus-impact on the defensive end of the floor.

[pearljammer10]

Hayward is an extremely underrated defender. Crowder was good at what he did due to his junkyard dog persona and his hustle factor. I think he was a tad bit overrated on defense in the end despite him still being well above average at it.

[playdream]

I think that Hayward is a much better defender than Jay Crowder. I haven't seen this mentioned. Hayward is faster,  he can pick up guards or guard big wings. Hayward is much longer and faster. Hayward is a huge upgrade to this Celtics squad.

Agreed. also think we will be better in defense and rebounding(which is a dissapoint last year)

[Bucketgetter]

Jae is a louder defender than Gordon.

That is,  he stomps around and screams after every play.

But they're probably comparable. It only matters that you're not a minus-impact on the defensive end of the floor.

That’s not true. Great defensive players are still very valuable and can have a huge impact on the game. See Kawhi Leonard and what he did to the Warriors in Game 1 on the WCF.

[Fireworks_Boom!]

I think that Hayward is a much better defender than Jay Crowder. I haven't seen this mentioned. Hayward is faster,  he can pick up guards or guard big wings. Hayward is much longer and faster. Hayward is a huge upgrade to this Celtics squad.

TP, liam. I absolutely believe the same thing. While Hayward hasn't grown to a 25+ ppg per player, he is capable of it. But what he adds to this team besides scoring ability is tenacity. On both sides of the ball too. He can drive the lane with authority, he plays sound defense and can defend against the switch on smaller players.

I'm really anxious to see how this team gels together after a full season. I'm also very excited to see KI ability to develop further. He is saying all the right things.

[Phantom255x]

I watched some of the Warriors and Jazz playoff games to sort of scout Hayward a bit LOL.

He's actually an underrated yet LETHAL defender. He was EASILY the best player on the court for the Jazz in that series, and Gobert just looked bad honestly.

I think the biggest factor here is that Hayward is going to force Lebron to work and try harder though. Obviously Lebron > Hayward, no questions, BUT unlike Crowder, Hayward can knock down the open 2s and 3s very easily and can D up on Lebron better. Lebron may still have great games, but will have to work harder for it and probably be forced to more contested shots than just dancing to the rim (like he did to us ALL ECF with Crowder on him).

Hayward played defense on Curry and Durant and actually did fairly well given the circumstances and managed to switch around smoothly, but obviously Warriors have too much firepower and outside of Hayward, no one really showed up that series for Utah.

I loved what Jae brought to the C's the past few years and he was definitely a big part of the team's growth the past few years, but it's hard not to get excited about Hayward and Tatum. Hayward is simply a much better, consistent 23-25 PPG scorer, who is an above average defender with size and an all-star coming from a LOADED West. And like Crowder, Hayward can rebound the ball too, obviously not Drummond-level, but can give you 6-8 rebounds a game if needed (sort of like Jae did). I expect Hayward's assist numbers to go up a bit too.

In a Brad Stevens' system with other ferocious defenders, I at least hope Hayward AND Irving can only get better on defense. Hayward is firm and can hold his ground on D IMHO.