Skip to main content

Jaylen Brown's season-ending injury can clarify Celtics future

 If the playoff picture for the Boston Celtics was rosier, I would be writing that Jaylen Brown's season-ending wrist injury was a tragedy. But with the information on his torn wrist ligament coming just prior to the playoffs, it is tough news for the All-Star, but not so horrendous for a team most analysts pegged as going nowhere this year.


Prior to the bad news, NBA analyst, Jalen Rose, had already stated the Celtics were heading to a first-round exit in this season's play-in tournament. The analysis this morning isn't any better with most pundits now in agreement with Rose.

Any pressure to go deep into the post-season is now kaput. The expectations can not be any lower for The Green. Both Danny Ainge and Brad Stevens need to take full opportunity of the situation and clarify just what is needed to improve the team's performance going forward.

How good a season was Jaylen having prior to the injury? His best season yet! He set career-bests at minutes (34;5 MPG), points (24.7 PPG), assists (3.4 APG), steals (1.2 SPG), field goal percentage (48.4%), 3-point percentage (39.7%) and free throw percentage (76.4%). Attempting to replace that stat line with a mix of subs should go a long way to determining what path this team will take next season.

Stevens already had a good idea of what Semi Ojeleye, Grant Williams and Carsen Edwards can, and cannot, do. All three should see time in the remaining regular season games, but the focus should be on Evan Fournier, Payton Pritchard and Aaron Nesmith. Rob Williams is plagued once again with a nagging injury (turf toe), and there seems little to gain in putting him out there for any extended period.

I honestly don't see Luke Kornet as any part of Boston's solution, and fans have seen little of Jabari Parker since his acquisition. Significant minutes for either player makes little sense. 

Fournier supplies a lot of the veteran stability that Gordon Hayward contributed, and Ainge should think seriously of signing him for the future. Pritchard has proven to be a durable addition (team-high 62 games played) - hits the accelerator on the team's pace when he is on the floor - and looks to be a reliable substitute at the point guard position, at the very least. 

I have been high on Aaron Nesmith since pre-draft time, and his play in the last four games has been revealing. He is tough - he can shoot - he always seems to be on the ball - and he scores in so many ways. But mainly, he hustles. He works hard. Fans want to see more of him. 

Jayson Tatum may be Boston's main building block for the future, but it should not go unnoticed how Brown has continually improved, and added to his game, every season. Whether Danny Ainge sees him as having more value as a critical second-option to Tatum in Beantown, or as major trade chip remains to be seen. But look for the Celtics cloudy future to be clarified in the next several weeks. And sincere wishes for a quick and complete recovery for Jaylen.



Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The Elm Street Nightmare

 A true-and-suspenseful horror tale of haunting, homicides and the hunt for triple-murderer, Daniel Laplante - as told by the cops that were there By Lt. Thomas Lane (Ret.)  Daniel Laplante - cold, calm, clever, calculating- Photo: YouTube   Elm Street  surfaces on four occasions in the Laplante saga: 1.) He  resided on Elm Street  in Townsend, Massachusetts 2.) He  kidnapped a woman  at gunpoint on  Elm Street, Pepperell , Massachusetts 3.) He was arrested and transported to Massachusetts State Police Barracks on Elm Street in Concord . 3.) He was  tried, convicted   and sentenced for the murders at  Superior Court , corner of  Elm Stree t and Gorham Street, Lowell, Massachusetts. When evil and cleverness reside in the same mind, the stage is often set for true horror. Such was the case with triple-murderer, Daniel Laplante . As a 16-year old , he quickly transitioned from: Minor thefts and breaking into homes To: Taunting and threatening a father and his two daughters as an unseen

Rules of survival: When search-and-rescue turns into body recovery

 How the Hell did this happen? Two days after 19-year-old Emily Sotelo was supposedly dropped off in Franconia Notch (NH) at roughly 5:00 AM ET, Sunday, November 20, 2022 by her mother, to hike several mountains alone, the search continues for the young lady. Photo by Linda Lane The information from news agencies indicated that Emily started hiking the trails while it was still dark. She was supposedly wearing only sneakers, a coat and workout pants. I can persona;ly attest that the weather in the area was very cold with high wind speeds, and gaining elevation on the trails would only add to the horrendous conditions. Ms. Sotelo was reportedly a seasoned hiker, but had little or no experience hiking in winter. At the peaks, temperatures on that Sunday dropped to zero degrees with a wind chill of minus-30 degrees. It is beyond my comprehension to imagine a hiker-of-experience tackling that kind of travel - in extreme weather - with only basic clothes and few (or no) supplies. I have hik

Nik Stauskas adds "shooting with size" voiced by Brad Stevens

 As a 6'6" shooting guard, 28-year-old Nik Stauskas adds that shooting with size sorely needed by the Boston Celtics. Drafted 8th-overall by the Sacramento Kings in 2014, Stauskas has bounced around to various teams since then. Nik Stauskas' deal with the Boston Celtics includes non-guaranteed salary for the second season in 2022-23, a source tells @celticsblog . — Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) March 4, 2022 Nik has never averaged more than 9.5 points per game in the NBA, but Boston is most likely counting on his production for Grand Rapids in the G League as the incentive to sign him. In 17 games thus far, he has averaged 24.7 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 4.8 APG - while shooting 50% on field goals and 45% on treys. Nik Stauskas is signing a two-year deal with the Boston Celtics, his agents Mark Bartelstein and Andy Shiffman of @PrioritySports tell ESPN. Stauskas had an historic week, scoring 100 points on 57 and 43 point performances in back-to-back games for Grand Rapids. — Adrian Wo