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Celtics need to shore up their bench

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It became obvious in the Celtics 122-113 loss to the Indiana Pacers last night. Boston's bench was outscored by the opponent's subs 47-19. Marcus Smart was out with an eye infection - Jaylen Brown fouled out, and Gordon Hayward suffered a game-ending facial injury. That's all that Indiana needed to take the game away from Boston.


This has been a season-long issue for the Celtics. With a 17-6 record after 23 games, they are second-to-last (29th) in the League in points scored by the bench. The Boston subs are only contributing 27.1 points per game. Compare that figure to the top-ranked Clippers whose bench puts up 52.0 points/game. That's the issue.

I recently proposed that Danny Ainge should at least make an inquiry about the Washington Wizards' sharpshooting big man, Davis Bertans. He is the Wizards' second-leading scorer behind Bradley Beal, putting up 15.7 PPG in only 28.9 minutes per game. He would fill Boston's need for a quality big, while adding a proven scorer that hits the 3-ball at a 46.5% clip.


Boston's lack of bench scoring will be exploited come playoff time, and the addition of a veteran that can come off the pine to put points on the board seems vital. Count me as one that is surprised that 19-year-veteran, Jamal Crawford, is still available on the free agent market. Crawford hasn't hit the rocking chair quite yet, and the 2-way guard needs another shot with a Title contender. One of Boston's few weaknesses has been exposed, and it may be time for Danny Ainge to act to repair it.

Follow Tom at @CelticsSentinel, @CausewayStreet and Facebook
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