Celtics player power rankings: Jae Crowder is doing work on the boards
Boston's small forward is averaging 8.1 rebounds per game in March.
COMMENTARYThe Celtics took a major step toward securing the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference on Monday night with a win over the Washington Wizards, but the team is not satisfied with holding steady at that spot. Instead, it’s evident that the Cleveland Cavaliers are on Boston’s mind, as the defending champions own just a two-game lead for the top seed with 11 games to play. That small gap, plus a tough remaining schedule for the Cavs, puts home-court advantage in play for the green.
“I want it as bad as you can get it,” Isaiah Thomas said of the top spot Monday. “Hopefully we just keep at least the second seed, but it would be nice to sneak in and get the first seed as well. We just have to control our own destiny and control what we can.”
With five straight home games on the docket and an 11-1 record in their last 12 games at TD Garden, the schedule has lined up quite nicely for the Celtics to make things interesting these last three weeks of the regular season. Here’s a look at who will have to step it up to make a run at Cleveland in this week’s edition of the player power rankings.
15. Demetrius Jackson: The rookie point guard was called back up to the active roster for Boston’s road trip over the weekend with Thomas sidelined, but he did not see any minutes.
14. Jordan Mickey: With Boston’s frontcourt at full strength, the second-year forward got some reps with the Maine Red Claws in the last week. The 22-year-old shook off a few weeks of rust to average 21 points and 7.5 rebounds per game.
13. James Young: The swingman has not returned to the floor in seven straight games since an ugly stint against the Clippers on March 6. With Terry Rozier struggling with his shot, odds are Young will get another shot before the regular season concludes.
12. Gerald Green: Offense was hard to create for the Celtics over the weekend with Thomas resting his bruised knee, but Green was one reserve who rose to the challenge. The veteran scored 16 points combined in Brooklyn and Philadelphia, showing Brad Stevens that he can be counted on as an offensive spark in spurts down the stretch.
11. Jonas Jerebko: The Swede’s minute totals over the last five games: 6, 24, 7, 16, 0. With the Celtics struggling offensively you might expect to see more of Jerebko, but Brad Stevens has been experimenting with bigger lineups more of late, leaving the stretch forward looking at longer stints on the pine.
10. Tyler Zeller: One of Boston’s only true centers has still failed to play more than seven minutes in a game in March, but that hasn’t stop him from contributing (4 points, 3 rebounds vs. Wizards on Monday). That type of line in a limited stint earned him plenty of praise from Al Horford after the win. “I have a lot of respect for Tyler because he’s usually the first one in the gym every day,” Horford said. “He’s really working, he’s staying in shape, he’s just a true professional. It’s hard in the position he’s in. For him to just be ready and perform is very impressive.”
9. Terry Rozier: A double-double (14 points, 10 rebounds) in Philadelphia has been overshadowed by his horrendous shooting of late. The second-year guard is just 4-of-23 from the field in the last week, including a dreadful 2-of-12 from 3-point range.
8. Jaylen Brown: The biggest news from the rookie’s week was a mid-game shouting match with Marcus Smart after Brown failed to run a play properly in his teammate’s opinion. Despite the drama surrounding the episode, the 20-year-old quickly defused the situation afterward, a positive sign for his maturity and development. “I let it go,” Brown told the Boston Herald on Friday. “I’m passionate about the game, I want to win too. We’re headed into the playoffs, and there’s stuff we have to clean up as a team. Confrontation and arguments are going to happen. Moving forward it’s a good thing and we should be better for it.”
7. Marcus Smart: The third-year guard has followed up the best shooting month of his career with the worst shooting slump of his season. He’s made a mere 31 percent of his shot attempts in March, largely due to a 15 percent mark from downtown on four-plus attempts per game.
6. Kelly Olynyk: No player hit the glass harder against the Wizards on Monday night than Olynyk. The seven-footer piled up a season-high 11 rebounds in just 18 minutes of action. The Canadian big man has also been one of the more consistent bench contributors for Brad Stevens in recent weeks, scoring nine or more points in five straight games.
5. Amir Johnson: The starting center not only has the highest net rating (+7.5) on the Celtics this season, but it has nearly doubled since the All-Star break (+14.0). That type of success with Johnson on the court for Boston continues to lead to more minutes for the veteran big man. He’s played above his season average of 20 minutes per game nine times in March.
4. Jae Crowder: At just 6-foot-7, Crowder does not have the look of a formidable rebounder, but his effort on the glass lately has helped turn around Boston’s defensive performance. He’s leading the C’s in defensive rebounding rate (grabbing 22 percent of all available rebounds), helping Boston climb to 11th in the league over that span. That’s a considerable jump from their 26th overall ranking for the season.
3. Avery Bradley: With Crowder slumping, Bradley has opened up a sizable edge as the team leader in 3-point shooting. The shooting guard is knocking down 41.2 percent of his attempts from downtown on the season, which would also double as a career-high for him. Crowder ranks second at 39.5 percent.
2. Al Horford: Point center? Al Horford is beginning to look more and more like one as this season progresses. He’s averaging 5.6 assists per game in the month of March and his assist rate of 26 percent leads the entire roster. With shooters like Bradley and Thomas getting healthy around him, Horford’s distribution ability should help the C’s climb out of their offensive slump (25th in league since All-Star break)
1. Isaiah Thomas: There was no better example of Isaiah’s importance to the C’s offense than the team’s two dud performances against in Brooklyn and Philadelphia without him in action. Boston scores 14 more points per 100 possessions when Thomas is on the floor, making him the biggest difference maker in that department on the roster.
