Jay King thoughts on the Celtics

[Phantom255x]

And guess what, the league is trending towards those guys too (Embiid, KAT, Wemby, Jokic, etc.), you're gonna need to beef it up more and add size to combat it/neutralize it. Relying on smallball to cover those guys like the C's did in Game 7 vs PHI is tough.

I was reading some quotes from unnamed league executives a few days ago and they were talking about this. They were not talking about bigs in general in the league but solely in terms of Wemby. Saying that everyone is looking for ways to add size to try and combat Wemby. That everyone is terrified of him.

A bit like with Shaq. Everyone need 3 centers who were roughly 7 feet and 250+lbs to try and combat him.

Now teams are loading up in size to deal with Wemby. They won't need as much beef as they did with Shaq but height and length. Bigger forwards. Bigger guards. More switchability. Quality defensive centers. That seems to be the idea.

I know he wasn't there for like 70% of the postseason run in 2024, but you saw how impactful Porzingis was when he was out there that year and in the Finals games. In fact a lot of the recent championship teams with the exception of those Warriors teams have a superstar big guy or a nice, capable duo (Chet-Hartenstein, Ibaka-Gasol, KP-Horford). You do need a good frontcourt more often than not. Even the Cavaliers in the 2010s with Lebron had Thompson and Kevin Love, but even Lebron with his size and gifts is basically a center too lol, or built like it.

[SparzWizard]

And guess what, the league is trending towards those guys too (Embiid, KAT, Wemby, Jokic, etc.), you're gonna need to beef it up more and add size to combat it/neutralize it. Relying on smallball to cover those guys like the C's did in Game 7 vs PHI is tough.

I was reading some quotes from unnamed league executives a few days ago and they were talking about this. They were not talking about bigs in general in the league but solely in terms of Wemby. Saying that everyone is looking for ways to add size to try and combat Wemby. That everyone is terrified of him.

A bit like with Shaq. Everyone need 3 centers who were roughly 7 feet and 250+lbs to try and combat him.

Now teams are loading up in size to deal with Wemby. They won't need as much beef as they did with Shaq but height and length. Bigger forwards. Bigger guards. More switchability. Quality defensive centers. That seems to be the idea.

I know he wasn't there for like 70% of the postseason run in 2024, but you saw how impactful Porzingis was when he was out there that year and in the Finals games. In fact a lot of the recent championship teams with the exception of those Warriors teams have a superstar big guy or a nice, capable duo (Chet-Hartenstein, Ibaka-Gasol, KP-Horford). You do need a good frontcourt more often than not. Even the Cavaliers in the 2010s with Lebron had Thompson and Kevin Love, but even Lebron with his size and gifts is basically a center too lol, or built like it.

Big men wins championships as they say.

Except for those Warriors teams, and for whatever reason, 2021-2022 we got smacked around by Draymond Green and Kevon Looney.

We need to go back to the old days...load up on PF and C's.

[Goldstar88]

They have to add a center that can start.

Move Hauser and let Baylor and Hugo assume that role. Both should be in the gym shooting 1000 3s a day.

They still need guard depth.

Who would you target at center?

No love for Queta?  Idk - he looks like a starting center to me.

I guess it depends on what your definition of starting center is. He was a net negative in the playoffs. Seems like something they should try to improve upon rather than crossing their fingers and hoping he continues to develop.

Wasn?t everyone in the starting lineup not named Jayson Tatum a net negative in the playoffs?

[tenn_smoothie]

Mr. King glossed over Mazzulla's failure as a playoff coach. Yes, I know he mentioned it, but he continued to push the increasingly tired references to his regular season record. He also ignored the fact that the 2024 title was won in spite of Joe with overwhelming talent and a fortunate playoff draw. The guy has been a bumbling incompetent in the playoffs with his stubborn offensive scheme and his bone-headed decisions like starting the 3 bench players in game 7 vs Philly.

The Celts, at this point in the Tatum/Brown era need a roster makeover to become serious contenders again. Not a complete overhaul, but the addition of some young talent to add some offensive and defensive horsepower to the team. Executing that makeover and regaining full financial flexibility may take an additional year to complete. However, no personnel improvement is going to win the next title until we bring in a competent coach. To me, it is obvious that Mazzulla is an impediment to playoff success. I can only hope that either Brad finally sees the problem or that the new ownership steps in to force Joe out.