Xavier Tillman

[KGs Knee]

The fact this is a 2 year deal makes me think this is as much Tillman just really wanting to be here as it is a dry market for his services. Why lock yourself in at the minimum, unless you think you might not stick in the league or just really like the situation you are in.

[W8ting2McHale]

Horford 2.0 is back!

Seems he got a late start recovering from some injury when they signed him last season.    I?m thinking he?ll be healthier and more familiar to the team , comfortable and accepting his role. He might show improvement this season I believe .
A really likable guy with perfect team attitude.

Yeah. When he and Springer were added it seemed like a ?kick the tires? moment to me and then they get more court time next season after adjusting to Boston and Celtics basketball.

Sounds like Tillman is thinking long term and investing in himself. He has time to develop his shot and hopefully another ring or two, while extending his career. If all goes well he can flip that success into a bigger contract later.

[dannyboy35]

  Glad to have Tillman back but this horford comparison needs to stop. It?s absurd. He can?t shoot and is short for the position. He?s never gonna protect the rim .

[A Future of Stevens]

I just feel so much better about our big rotation sans Kristaps to start the season. We might not get totally abused in the paint when Horford has nights off.

[liam]

  Glad to have Tillman back but this horford comparison needs to stop. It?s absurd. He can?t shoot and is short for the position. He?s never gonna protect the rim .

I think the main similarities are that he can guard up and down positions and from high up on TV he looks like Al. He's a poor man's Al Horford...

[Vermont Green]

Horford is listed at 6 ft - 9 in, Tillman at 6 ft - 7 in, but I don't think length is the issue.  Horford is a career 38% 3-point shooter, 42% last season, Tillman is career 28% from 3.  Tillman has a career 57% FT%, Horford 76% FT%.  Tillman has a long way to go if he wants to be the next Horford.  That doesn't mean he won't be useful productive bench player though.

I think there is a lot of truth in the assumption that it can take a season for a player to fit in, to find his role with a new team.  That is especially true when the team is established and contending for a title, like the Celtics.  Just look back on Derrick White in his first half season in BOS.  We shall see how this plays out for Tillman this coming season.  I do expect him to be better and he should get some real opportunity to start the season with Porzingis out.  But he needs to find a way to score, or at least be a threat to score, or the other teams will just sag off him and clog things up.

[W8ting2McHale]

Brad seems to like having a player that is a little thicker than most to throw at opponents that like to score in the paint. It changes the spacing and slows guys like Giannis and Embiid down a bit, with the added benefit of wearing them out because they have to exert more energy to get to their spots.

X is 25, so I?m not counting on him to suddenly develop a 3 point shot, but that would certainly make him more valuable and help the team.

I see him as filling the role Grant, Semi, and Crowder had (and hopefully not the Dancing Bear) rather than Big Al?s

[No Nickname]

Brad seems to like having a player that is a little thicker than most to throw at opponents that like to score in the paint. It changes the spacing and slows guys like Giannis and Embiid down a bit, with the added benefit of wearing them out because they have to exert more energy to get to their spots.

X is 25, so I?m not counting on him to suddenly develop a 3 point shot, but that would certainly make him more valuable and help the team.

I see him as filling the role Grant, Semi, and Crowder had (and hopefully not the Dancing Bear) rather than Big Al?s

You nailed it.  He's big enough, and has just enough lateral quicks to give Luka a little trouble.

And he could probably do the same against Giannis. The only other person on the roster that could guard Giannis would be Horford.

Porzingis? Kornet? Queta? Tatum?  Nope, nope, nope, nope.  Tatum maybe, but with a lot of help.

[GreenEnvy]

I?m surprised we were able to retain him.

He kind of had that PJ Brown moment with a couple of nice defensive plays and a big shot when we called on him.

Big body, has talent, young enough to get better, great personality. Nothing not to like about bringing him back.

[Who]

  Glad to have Tillman back but this horford comparison needs to stop. It?s absurd. He can?t shoot and is short for the position. He?s never gonna protect the rim .

I think the main similarities are that he can guard up and down positions and from high up on TV he looks like Al. He's a poor man's Al Horford...

Tillman is like Horford on defense & rebounding. Not the offensive player Horford is.

That might be as much as we can hope for in a Horford replacement given both (1) how rare a talent Horford is (2) how limited the team is financially with all the money owed to the 5 starters.

[celticinorlando]

Tillman needs needs to shoot 500 3's a day this summer

[Phantom255x]

  Glad to have Tillman back but this horford comparison needs to stop. It?s absurd. He can?t shoot and is short for the position. He?s never gonna protect the rim .

I think the main similarities are that he can guard up and down positions and from high up on TV he looks like Al. He's a poor man's Al Horford...

Tillman is like Horford on defense & rebounding. Not the offensive player Horford is.

That might be as much as we can hope for in a Horford replacement given both (1) how rare a talent Horford is (2) how limited the team is financially with all the money owed to the 5 starters.

The thing is, it's not like Horford is a prolific scorer either. Yes during his prime he was a regular starter but typically averaged around 14-16 PPG. It's not like Horford usually averages 30 a game. In a role player setting, Horford has averaged 8-10 PPG the last two seasons. Tillman averaged 5 PPG last season while playing fewer minutes.

Yeah Tillman probably isn't gonna become a 3-point shooter like Horford but you never know. Even Horford didn't really develop a 3-point arsenal until about 2015 when he was now 8 years into the league. Tillman is still just 25. If he can develop even the ability to hit open corner 3s like he did once against DAL in Game 3 of the Finals, awesome!

The hope with Tillman is that he can replicate Horford's bench role, with the rebounding, defense and occasional playmaking which I hope he's learning behind the scenes.

[liam]

Horford is listed at 6 ft - 9 in, Tillman at 6 ft - 7 in, but I don't think length is the issue.  Horford is a career 38% 3-point shooter, 42% last season, Tillman is career 28% from 3.  Tillman has a career 57% FT%, Horford 76% FT%.  Tillman has a long way to go if he wants to be the next Horford.  That doesn't mean he won't be useful productive bench player though.

I think there is a lot of truth in the assumption that it can take a season for a player to fit in, to find his role with a new team.  That is especially true when the team is established and contending for a title, like the Celtics.  Just look back on Derrick White in his first half season in BOS.  We shall see how this plays out for Tillman this coming season.  I do expect him to be better and he should get some real opportunity to start the season with Porzingis out.  But he needs to find a way to score, or at least be a threat to score, or the other teams will just sag off him and clog things up.

Tillman: 6?7.50? barefoot, 6?8.50? in shoes,  8?10.00? standing reach, 266.5 lbs, 7?2.00? wingspan at the 2020 NBA Combine ?

Horford: Weight: 246 LBS ; Standing reach: 8-foot-11 ; Height without shoes: 6-foot-8 ; Height with shoes: 6-foot-9.75 ; Wingspan: 7-foot-0.75.

[Neurotic Guy]

I think X likes the three and should be able to improve his %. 

An aside - Luke could possibly be a threat from three.  His % on small samples through the years is pretty good. And we know he?s got a nice stroke and makes FTs.

[Celtics2021]

I think X likes the three and should be able to improve his %. 

An aside - Luke could possibly be a threat from three.  His % on small samples through the years is pretty good. And we know he?s got a nice stroke and makes FTs.

Luke could be more of a threat from three, but his best ability is offensive rebounding.  His offensive rebounding percentage would have been third last year if he had played enough minutes to qualify for the leaderboard, so he is pretty elite at that skill.  Sending him out to the perimeter would obviously limit his effectiveness as an interior rebounder, as well as the spacing he helps create by being a lob threat, so I think that is why he is the one guy on the team not asked to shoot threes.