I think the playoffs are different than the regular season. I do not think Simons would have gotten a ton of play in these playoffs honestly because you have to choose him or Pritchard. It?s tough to have two guys people can attack and Pritchard has a bit more strength to resist at times than Simons. Same for Brunson since he is pretty strong so he is not as easy to pick on as Simons in my opinion. I would take Simons back if we trade Pritchard otherwise not really worth what we would likely have to pay for him.
Well I'm just some schmo on the internet. So let's allow his coach tell us how Simons' defense is completely different now:
https://www.tiktok.com/@nbcsboston/video/7595799206477024567
And here's video evidence of the transformation he made from the first two months of the season to the last two:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sy6N9ogl8C0
That's better evidence than what my personal opinion is on a keyboard.
Simons finished the season hurt after reaggrevating an injury from the Celtics training camp, so I am not sure he would have gotten any playing time. I also am not convinced that some nice things were not said about him just to try to improve his trade value.
That said, I liked him and would be happy to have him back next year. Defense aside, we could have used his offensive energy during the Philly series if he were available.
You're right, his injury definitely would have played a part in how much he saw the floor.
And I totally agree that Joe might have been trying to improve Simons' trade value, but two things can be true at once. Anfernee's defense could also have improved tremendously.
And that's why I didn't just include coach-speak in my reply, but video evidence.
I'm not saying playoff teams would not have at least tried to hunt him, but merely that it wouldn't have been like they were going after the Portland version of Simons.
His technique, and especially his effort, completely changed with the Celtics.