- While the Celtics still have an enviable collection of assets to put in play if they take a big swing on the trade market, the value of some of those assets has depreciated a little this season, as Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report details. Boston’s first-round picks from the Kings, Clippers, and Grizzlies may not be as valuable as initially anticipated, given how those teams have performed, and Jaylen Brown has taken a step back in his development so far.
Kyrie Irving is enjoying another stellar offensive season as the Celtics find their footing. However, one distinct difference has been Irving’s improvement on defense, Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston writes.
While the statistics are not eye-popping, there is a visual and discernible difference in Irving’s hustle and performance. As Forsberg notes, Irving entered Friday’s game ranked fifth in loose balls recovered (2.1), seventh in deflections per game (3.1), and eighth in steals (1.9). Irving is also ranked 18th in the NBA in charges drawn.
After Irving made comments earlier this year about him “coasting” on defense in his career, he has made it a point to not have that mentality anymore.
“I think it’s just a true challenge that I came into the season with of wanting to put an emphasis on that end of the floor,” Irving said. “That’s really what it comes down to. I think in my career I’ve really gotten away with just being an offensive talent, being a guy that has just been solid but never being a guy that I would say just consistently brings that effort every single time down the floor. “
Check out more Celtics notes below:
- At a recent practice, Irving urged teammate Gordon Hayward to be more aggressive on the floor and he responded with a solid shooting performance in Friday’s win. As Harry West of Sporting News writes, Irving — who shares a birthday with Hayward — wants him to release the ‘a**’ in him. “I remember [Irving’s former Duke] coach [Mike Krzyzewski] telling me, you know, Gordon has a little bit of a** in him. And he needs that,” Irving said. “That toughness where he starts turning red and he starts getting into the basketball, getting out in transition and dunking the basketball and start doing those things.”
- Jaylen Brown was asked how he felt about a possible change in the rotation upon his return from injury and he put the team winning ahead of his role, Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston writes. “Possibly, especially if we are winning,” Brown said of the idea that his role could change. “Whatever it is that needs to be done to figure it out. Everybody has talent, everybody has ability, but, obviously, we have to make something work here. We don’t want to be looking down the line and trying to figure out, ‘What if?’ or ‘Woulda, coulda,’ whatever.
- As we relayed recently, the Celtics waived Walt Lemon Jr.,. He was on a two-way pact with Boston but did not see NBA action this season.
Here are Friday’s G League assignments and recalls from across the NBA:
- The Rockets assigned veteran point guard Brandon Knight to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic. Knight is close to making his Houston debut after sitting out since April 2017 with a torn ACL. He’ll play for the Vipers on Friday when they host the Salt Lake City Stars. We have more details here.
- The Celtics recalled Brad Wanamaker from the Maine Red Claws, the team’s PR department tweets. Boston wanted a little more backcourt depth with Jaylen Brown declared out for Friday’s game against the Cavaliers. Wanamaker has appeared in five games with the Celtics, averaging 3.2 PPG in 6.2 MPG.
- The Bucks recalled big man Christian Wood from the Wisconsin Herd, according to a team press release. Wood has appeared in three games for the Herd, averaging 23.0 PPG, 10.7 RPG and 1.7 BPG in 33.4 MPG. He’s seen action in five Bucks games, averaging 3.8 PPG in 6.8 MPG.
Here are Thursday’s G League assignments and recalls from across the NBA:
- The Pistons assigned guard Luke Kennard to the Grand Rapids Drive as he continues his rehab from a shoulder injury, announcing the news in an email. Kennard will play with the Drive in the team’s game on Friday.
- The Grizzlies recalled then later assigned Jevon Carter to the Memphis Hustle, according to a tweet from the team. The move was made so Carter could practice with the Grizzlies Thursday morning.
- The Suns have recalled guard De’Anthony Melton from Northern Arizona, the team announced. Melton is averaging 17 points, 6.6 assists and seven rebounds in five G League games this season.
- The Timberwolves have assigned Keita Bates-Diop to the Iowa Wolves, the team’s G League affiliate, announcing the news on Twitter. Bates-Diop has seen action in two games with the Timberwolves this season.
- The Celtics assigned guard Brad Wanamaker to their G League affiliate, the Maine Red Claws, according to a tweet from the team. Wanamaker has scored 16 points in five games with Boston on the season.
- The Knicks recalled Luke Kornet from the Westchester Knicks, the team announced. Kornet has played in four games with the Knicks.
The Celtics have waived guard Walt Lemon Jr., who was on a two-way contract with the team, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Lemon didn’t appear in any games with Boston, spending much of his time with the club’s G League team in Maine. He was signed to a two-way deal in July after spending part of the 2017/18 season with the Pelicans, where he played five NBA games.
Lemon, 28, went undrafted in 2014 after playing four collegiate seasons at Bradley. He averaged 22.4 points in 40 games with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, G League affiliate of the Pacers, during the 2017/18 season.
The Celtics have started the season with an 11-10 record, struggling to gain chemistry on both ends of the floor. They’re set to host the 4-16 Cavaliers on Friday.
After making a brief comeback last season, veteran big man Kendrick Perkins is looking for another shot with an NBA club this season. As A. Sherrod Blakely of NBC Sports Boston details, Perkins said on Wednesday that he reached out to the Celtics to inquire about a potential reunion with his old team.
“I did reach out to (Celtics president of basketball operations) Danny (Ainge),” Perkins said. “I told him, ‘I’m here if you need me.’ He said, ‘You know what, Perk? I would love for you to end your career here.’ And I was like, ‘OK, keep me in mind.'”
During an appearance on Toucher & Rich on Thursday morning, Ainge acknowledged that he had spoken to Perkins, as Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston tweets. However, while the former Celtics center may be on Boston’s radar, it doesn’t sound like a deal will happen anytime soon.
“I don’t think it’s a good fit for our team right now,” Ainge said. “You never know what happens during the course of a season.”
According to Blakely, Perkins said that if he returns to the NBA, it likely won’t happen until at least January, when teams become eligible to sign players to 10-day contracts. And no matter where he ends up playing, the 34-year-old expects 2018/19 to be his final NBA season, Blakely adds.
Perkins didn’t specify any other potential destinations besides Boston, but indicated that he has drawn interest from a couple other clubs and will probably work out for one of them in early December, per Blakely. Citing a source close to Perkins’ camp, Ben Stinar of AmicoHoops.net (Twitter link) identified the Wizards and Timberwolves as ideal fits, so those may be the two other teams the 14-year veteran was referencing.
Perkins signed with the Cavaliers at the end of the 2017/18 season, appearing in his first NBA game since April 2016. However, his 15 minutes of action in Cleveland’s regular season finale represented his lone appearance for the team — he didn’t see the floor at all during the playoffs.
Terry Rozier showcased his ability to be a starting point guard in the NBA during last season’s playoffs, yet he’s stuck behind Kyrie Irving in Boston. Rozier’s future with the club remains unclear, as he will be a restricted free agent after the season. During an appearance on Rick Pitino’s podcast, he spoke about his desire to run with the first team.
“I’m going into my fifth year after this, so I would love to start,” Rozier told Pitino (via Darren Hartwell of NBC Sports). “Nothing is wrong with being the sixth man coming off the bench, but I don’t really look at myself as that. But that’s not my main focus. Of course I want to win. I’ve been a winner all my life, coming through your program and then being with the Boston Celtics.
“I like winning. I don’t know how I can adjust if I try to take a starting job somewhere but I’m playing for an awful team and we’re not winning no more. It’s just something that I don’t think that I can adjust to — being around people that’s OK with just losing.”
Rozier said he wants to keep his options open. “I feel like I’ve seen a lot in these four years how much a business this is. I think I should get everything I deserve,” he explained.
GM Danny Ainge is a huge fan of Rozier, though it will difficult for the Celtics to pay top dollar for a player who won’t be able to crack the starting five. That scenario assumes Irving stays put, as the former No. 1 pick stated he would. Should Irving change course and depart as a free agent this summer, Scary Terry may be able to find “everything” he’s looking for without leaving town.
- Within an in-depth piece on the Celtics‘ struggles, Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer writes, “Most executives expect the trade winds to stay quiet, and there are few players who would realistically be available who would be upgrades for Boston.” President of basketball operations Danny Ainge has essentially said as much publicly, as we detailed earlier today.
The Celtics are still struggling to find their rhythm this season, having now lost eight of their last 12 games to slip back to .500 (10-10). However, with the regular season at its one-quarter mark, president of basketball operations Danny Ainge isn’t worried, telling Steve Bulpett of The Boston Herald that he’s in no rush to make any trades to try to upgrade his roster.
“You know me. I’m always open to doing something,” Ainge said. “But that doesn’t mean I think we have to go and get something done right now. And it’s not that simple anyway. … Patience wins out more often than not — more than panic. It has to. I know panic is a bad way to react, so I will remain patient and allow our players to find their form. With some teams, it takes time, and some teams get it quicker. But I like a lot of things I see in our team this season, and I’m not going to be impatient.”
The Celtics entered the season with lofty expectations. After coming within one game of the NBA Finals in the spring, the team was getting injured stars Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward back, and no longer had to deal with LeBron James in the Eastern Conference. The C’s were the preseason frontrunners to come out of the East, and despite their early struggles, they remain a serious threat. After all, as Ainge suggests, there should be plenty of room for internal improvement in Boston.
“Look, I’m always looking to improve our team,” Ainge said. “But every one of our players is capable of playing better than they’ve played.”
Hayward, Jaylen Brown, and Marcus Smart are among the Celtics who are underachieving so far. Hayward, coming off a major ankle injury, has career lows in FG% (.400) and 3PT% (.286), and Brown’s shooting numbers are way down too (..398 FG%, .253 3PT%). Smart, meanwhile, is averaging a career-worst 6.4 PPG after signing a new four-year contract in the summer. All told, Boston currently ranks 27th in offensive rating.
Although we shouldn’t expect any moves from the Celtics anytime soon, Ainge will have no shortage of assets to dangle if and when he eventually explores the trade market. The club projects to have up to four first-round picks in the 2019 draft.
With the Knicks focused on player development and youth in this rebuilding season without Kristaps Porzingis, one bright spot in the first quarter of the team’s season has been the play of Allonzo Trier. As Tommy Beer writes for Forbes, Trier has showcased his elite scoring abilities and has proven that he belongs in the league, despite going undrafted last summer.
Trier has played nearly 500 minutes so far this season and has provided a consistent scoring threat off the bench, averaging 11.5 points per game while knocking down 47.2% of his 3-pointers.
While a lot of attention has been on Kevin Knox and the surprising play of second-round pick Mitchell Robinson, Beer points out that fans shouldn’t overlook Trier and his place in the team’s young core, especially given the consistency he has provided this season.
As Porzingis works on recovering from his torn ACL and the Knicks have plans to spend in free agency, it will be interesting to see what the team’s young core looks like moving froward.
There’s more from the Atlantic division:
- At his introduction press conference in May, Knicks head coach David Fizdale told Emmanuel Mudiay that “we’ll get you right.” As Marc Berman points out for The New York Post, Fizdale has kept that promise with an increased role for Mudiay, who has rewarded his coach with the best play of his career.
- While Sixers head coach Brett Brown has enjoyed Jimmy Butler‘s approach to integrating himself with the team, Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer reveals that there are times in which Brown wants Butler to be more aggressive offensively.
- Another recent Atlantic division notes post highlighted David Fizdale‘s return to Memphis and the Celtics‘ offensive struggles.