I believe Yabu is coming off of double ankle surgery this summer (missed summer league) so maybe he isn’t quite there yet physically.
Good point, though it's actually the tops of his feet - he had bone spurs removed. There was a discussion on here about his lack of lift in pre-season, and while I'm not sure I saw that particularly, it would make sense.
A problem like that suggests a potentially chronic situation. I'm a little skeptical, frankly, about his long-term future in the league. He's got a unique game for a guy his size, and it'd be great to see him mature and play minutes.
One thing that was so striking in pre-season was how much the Celtics bigs were crashing the offensive board, and Yabu did some great work, I thought, in getting the team some second shots, sneaking in and getting his big hands on the ball for backtaps. We'll see how much Brad Stevens allows that sort of thing this season; if the past is any indication, he prefers to lift the bigs in the half-court and get back on defense, minimizing rebounding on the offensive end.
If he stays healthy, he'll get a chance this year; so far he's nailed to the bench, but his time will come.
I like him though. A bruiser next to Horford is appealing and he can also spread the floor. He is so young though, and it’s not like I and others haven’t been fooled before by the promise of youth. Lol
All good points; I would also add that Jordan Mickey's career is not by any means over, either.