The Celtics are a lock to get out of the 1st round

[walker834]

No other team in the east really improved their roster except the Bulls and it's questionable how that will work out. 

We lost Turner and potentially Sully. 

Added Horford.  Our PF situation should be better with Amir and Olynyk should see improvement as well. Mickey might get a shot as well as some of our other guys.  I really liked what I saw from KO at times last year.  I felt like he was about to break through but had some set backs again.

Bradley and Crowder both were hurt last year against Atlanta.  They both should be able to repeat last years performances and be healthy this time around.

We drafted jaylen.  Smart should also see improvement as well as Rozier.  I think this is an improvement over anything Turner brought.  Plus Rj and Young.  Better shooting and Smart is just a better talent than Turner long term. 

Each year it may not seem like but our players see improvement. Bradley did.  KO has done it as well.  I don't see why Smart is going to be any different.

Atlanta was a bad matchup for us last year and just luck of the draw in the first round.

Around the trade deadline again rumors are just going to keep getting bigger and bigger.  We are still positioned to make moves with picks and players.   A lot of players are coming up on free agency where teams may actually move someone really good this time.

 I more just want to build this. That's the media for you and trades sometimes make sense to get your team into the next stratosphere but we have a lot of really good players.

[Celtics4ever]

We lost Turner and potentially Sully. 

Losing Sully may help us in the playoffs.  He played horrible last year.    He was solid against CLE the year before but him rushing back hurt our mojo and groove that we had while he was hurt that year.

Brown can drive and seems like he tries to make things happen.   I hope he can help in regards to losing Turner but he needs to improve his shot and stay aggressive.

Atlanta was a bad matchup for us last year and just luck of the draw in the first round.

Matchups are an excuse,  you have to beat who you beat.   They are just coast speak for lack of talent or needing more talent.   We did have some bad luck, Crowder got hurt, but this shows that we don't have much depth.

Sully was a no show.   But I feel he is unreliable in the second half of the season and quite frankly has has been the last two years.   The foot injury caused by excess weight and the mysterious no who since April this year.

I agree, we saw improvement.  Some of the new guys will help too.

[Granath]

Matchups are an excuse,  you have to beat who you beat.   They are just coast speak for lack of talent or needing more talent.   We did have some bad luck, Crowder got hurt, but this shows that we don't have much depth.

Sully was a no show.   But I feel he is unreliable in the second half of the season and quite frankly has has been the last two years.   The foot injury caused by excess weight and the mysterious no who since April this year.

I also don't worry about match ups. But it is important to note them when discussing injuries.

But perhaps even more key than Crowder we also lost Bradley in that series. With Crowder severely hobbled and Bradley out - two of the best players and biggest leaders on the floor - the Cs were quite hamstrung. They couldn't stretch the floor with Bradley gone and the normal lockdown defense from the wings was missing. One of the reasons we got killed inside and Sully was exposed (and with Hortford and Milsap that's a tough matchup for him) was because he was facing more penetration and movement from the wings.

Avery is constantly underestimated on CB. His game is so perfectly aligned with ITs it's hard to imagine a better fit. He shoots a very reliable 3 ball, can take on the tougher guard matchup every single trip down the floor, spaces the floor for ITs drive, gets back down the court well so if IT drives there's still someone playing defense...he does a lot of things well to help the Cs win and to compliment IT's game. Without Bradley the Cs took a pretty big hit in that series.

When you're missing your 2nd best player (Bradley) and your 3rd best (Crowder) is running about 70%, that's going to hinder your performance in the playoffs. I believe that some of that is already fixed going into this year. Guys like Rozier and maybe Hunter are far more ready to play. I think Smart will take a leap this year. I'm a big believer in Jaylen Brown and think he'll be able to offer punch off the bench. And Hortford makes us better in the middle. None of that is a stretch either. It's all pretty much the normal maturity of an average NBA player and/or the impact of a top pick and a top FA.

[dreamgreen]

I don't think so. Right now I don't think we are any better. Horford is a big upgrade over Sully but whomever takes over Turner's minutes will be a downgrade at this point. 48 wins again sounds right to me, second round will be based on who we play again.

[CoachBo]

We are better with Horford, diminished by the loss of Turner's ball handling - Smart isn't a good decision-maker with the basketball.

And we need more scoring. Desperately.

The Celtics are hardly a lock to get out of the first round with this roster. More changes need to be made.

[LilRip]

I think we're a lock for the 2nd round too, barring a major injury. Landing Horford was huge and he will make a significant impact on both ends. People lament over the loss of ET but I believe in our young guys. I think they will step up and show improvement this year.

A 2nd or 3rd seed doesn't seem unlikely.

[ederson]

Nothing is a lock ... not even GS winning it all


But i`d be very frustrated by another  first round exit

[nickagneta]

I dont buy into the "all our young guys will develop and get better this year" stuff. Sometimes players just dont get better. Sometimes a lot of times that happens, especially on late first round and second round picks. Simply put, Hunter, Young, Rozier, and Mickey might just be what they are and not get better. Olynyk may have reached his peak as a professional role playing bench player that will give you 10/5 with good shooting and a lack of interior defense. Marcus Smart just might be that bad of a shooter.

You never know about these things but I hope for the Celtics sake every player does develop. But to rely on them so much as to guarantee a trip out of the first round, I wouldnt go that far. There's a fair chance that Hunter and Young are what we saw last year and Olynyk has peaked. But I think we,could see better shooting and ball handling from Smart and development in Jaylen Brown's and Terry Rozier's game. Mickey, I have no idea. It could go either way.

And I wouldnt count on any other rookie seeing playing time other than Brown.

[Bobshot]

Horford obviously is a big improvement up front. But they lost Turner, a versatile player who was a part of their chemistry. Brown is a different type of player. He's still very young, and expectations should not be too high on him right away. Those monster dunks in his first summer league game are a concern. Dee Brown blew his knee out many years ago doing that, and destroyed his career.

Their guard situation keeps getting stronger every draft. Jackson and Rozier have both looked good  the first two summer league games. They are at a point where Ainge must decide who to keep, and use the others to trade for more help up front--especially somebody long who can protect the rim. I see The Warriors didn't waste any time trading for Pachulia. Some teams are top heavy in rim protectors. The Celts have none.

Ainge made a big splash signing Horford, but he has done nothing yet as a follow up. They are still pretty weak up front in rebounding and shot blocking.

I don't yet see a balanced team that can compete in the East with the Cavs.

[Granath]

I don't think so. Right now I don't think we are any better. Horford is a big upgrade over Sully but whomever takes over Turner's minutes will be a downgrade at this point. 48 wins again sounds right to me, second round will be based on who we play again.

Frankly, I think you're nuts about the Cs are not any better right now. Currently there's been one gain (Hortford) and one loss (Turner) of established meaningful players. Hortford >>>> Turner. That's it and it just may be that simple.

Then there's also been the acquisition of the #3 pick in the draft in Jaylen Brown. This is also a meaningful acquisition.

Then there's the natural maturity of a group of young players. Smart. Rozier. Hunter. Mickey. Odds are that at least one of those guys will get significantly better this season. But because the team is so young there's no real offset on the older side. Amir perhaps but how much worse would you expect him to be?

-----

That's the simple analysis. But let's look at what was lost when Turner departed and how it gets replaced. Remember that if you bother to do a search you'll find that I've been a Turner supporter even at times when most of CB couldn't stand him.

Turner is a jack of all trades player. He's a decent but not good scorer, rebounder and can run the offense. He's only acceptable on defense. He can't shoot from outside at ALL. What he offered the team is a guy who could play off the bench, help win the 2nd team battles and could play backup point guard. He was one of the few Celtics who could create his own shot so long as he was playing against 2nd tier guys. He was a valuable steadying influence on the court and a good pro. He was also lucky that Brad put him in situations and with players that helped him to succeed.

But I believe the Cs already have replaced his capabilities. Guys like Rozier and Brown all have roles to play and quite likely will be better in individual areas than Turner was. We should have a backup SF who can put the ball on the floor and create his own shot. We should have the backup PG who can penetrate and run the team. We have guys who can come in and steady a younger 2nd team. We've got guys with the length, the speed and the game to fill every role that Turner had. No, it's not all the same player but these guys may very well be better in those individual roles than Turner was.

I wish Evan the best and appreciate his many contributions. But there may not be a good place for him on this team anymore. I think the Cs may have grown past his abilities.

[Granath]

I dont buy into the "all our young guys will develop and get better this year" stuff. Sometimes players just dont get better. Sometimes a lot of times that happens, especially on late first round and second round picks. Simply put, Hunter, Young, Rozier, and Mickey might just be what they are and not get better. Olynyk may have reached his peak as a professional role playing bench player that will give you 10/5 with good shooting and a lack of interior defense. Marcus Smart just might be that bad of a shooter.

You never know about these things but I hope for the Celtics sake every player does develop. But to rely on them so much as to guarantee a trip out of the first round, I wouldnt go that far. There's a fair chance that Hunter and Young are what we saw last year and Olynyk has peaked. But I think we,could see better shooting and ball handling from Smart and development in Jaylen Brown's and Terry Rozier's game. Mickey, I have no idea. It could go either way.

And I wouldnt count on any other rookie seeing playing time other than Brown.

I don't see anyone claiming that every player develops significantly. But what do you think the odds are that none of them significantly develop? That's probably just as likely as that every one of them takes a leap in development. Both are long shots. But the Cs don't need all of them to develop to get better. The Cs need one of them to develop to get better than last year. I'll take those odds.

Note I am not claiming that the Cs are a lock to get out of the 1st round of the playoffs. Nothing is a lock - that's why they play the games. But I do think that the Celtics are significantly better now than they were at this time last year and I think there's a high likelihood that they will continue to improve throughout the season and be significantly better at the end of this coming season than they were at the end of this past one.

[Kuberski33]

If they don't adequately replace Turner, they're going to lose more than their share of close games and not make the playoffs.  Right now his replacement is not on the roster.

[Chris22]

Olynyk, Bradley, and Crowder were injured for the playoffs.
So if we stay healthy, we are adding Olynyk, Bradley, Crowder, and Horton.
We should be much better.

[Moranis]

The Knicks are better.  Brooklyn and Philadelphia are both a lot better.  Remember those were the 3 worst teams in the East last year and all were in the Atlantic.  It helps the W/L record when you have more games against the worst teams than anyone else (aside from Toronto of course).  I certainly don't think Brooklyn and Philadelphia will be better than Boston, just better.  The Knicks though are an interesting team.  They still have Anthony and Zingis should be a lot better.  Who knows what Rose and Noah will be.  They have a shot to be pretty good. 

Charlotte should be better than last year and were a 48 win team.  Chicago and Indiana should both be a good deal better though not sure they will pass Boston.  Detroit was a better team than Boston down the stretch after the Harris trade, I would expect they will only get better.  Cleveland and Toronto should both still be better than us.  Atlanta is interesting as they basically swap Howard for Horford and turned the keys over to Schroder.

So as of right now, I would put Boston in the 5 to 7 range clearly behind Cleveland and behind Toronto, Charlotte, and Detroit and right in the same general range as Chicago and Indiana.  I think Atlanta, Miami, Milwaukee, and New York will be fighting for the 8 spot.  There is a lot of parity outside of Cleveland again in the East.

[action781]

No other team in the east really improved their roster except the Bulls and it's questionable how that will work out. 

Indiana and NYK very seriously improved their rosters. Even if one of Noah /Rose misses the entire season, they would still be improved over last season.