Whenever an NBA team like the Boston Celtics makes a trade, it is banking on whatever coming back being more of the thing a ball club needs than what they are sending out — even if — in some cases — a team is trying to accumulate draft capital or young talent in a rebuild. The same can be said for players who aren’t re-signed in favor of using a roster spot elsewhere.
So there may be times a team gets worse by design, but that doesn’t stop fans and analysts from dunking on a franchise if a player they dealt away starts playing well later. To be fair, sometimes it’s annoyingly deserved (cough cough Desmond Bane cough), but it can also be a fun exercise to look back on what might have been.
To that end, the staff of HoopsHype put together a league-wide exercise of the best five players a team has recently moved on from contrasted with the best players they have now — let’s see how they rated out the Celtics.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver highlights Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum’s role representing the US https://t.co/54d8j8iZpE
— The Celtics Wire (@TheCelticsWire) December 18, 2022
The ex-Celtics
Terry Rozier (Charlotte Hornets)
Kyrie Irving (Brooklyn Nets)
Jae Crowder (Phoenix Suns)
Marcus Morris, Sr. (Los Angeles Clippers)
Kelly Olynyk (Utah Jazz)
The current Celtics
Marcus Smart
Jaylen Brown
Jayson Tatum
Al Horford
Robert Williams III
The argument
Celtics alum Kemba Walker has huge return to NBA action with Dallas Mavericks (highlights) https://t.co/ulRQJy2HWo
— The Celtics Wire (@TheCelticsWire) December 18, 2022
“All of the Boston Celtics’ exes have had some level of success since after leaving Boston, but Boston’s front office and fans love what they have going on right now,” suggests HoopsHype.
“With the Celtics boasting statistically the best team in the NBA behind the elite tandem of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, the advantage here goes to current Boston, which has a starting five that also features Marcus Smart, Derrick White, and Robert Williams.”
“Plus, no one in Boston can be missing the Kyrie Irving experience,” the panel is sure to note.
The conclusion
“The current Celtics are loaded,” writes H/H.
And while Boston’s recent woes may hint that some sort of changes might yet be needed, it’s hard to look at how the team started the season and not side with this iteration of the team.
Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:
Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6
Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi
YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ
