Who will be the Celtics’ best player this year?
With an abundance of young talent, it's hard to choose just one.
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Now that they’re practicing and we can see them on the court together, it hits you how much talent the Celtics have. My question is who will their best player be this year? I’d say Kyrie [Irving], but Gordon Hayward, Jayson Tatum and Al Horford all have a case? Who is your pick? –Rob L.
Well, that Sports Illustrated top-100 players thing that got so much run had Horford 16th in the league. I’ve got a beef with that. He’s top seven at a minimum. Not average, that Al.
All right, I kid. Irving would be my choice, too. Perhaps it’s because his season ended early and the Celtics accomplished some pretty impressive things after he went down with the knee injury, but it shouldn’t fade from memory how electrifying and efficient. He pulls off the impossible, and he makes it look easy.
SI had him right below Horford at 17, mostly because of the injury. Healthy, he’s a top 10 player in the league. How many other players can go move-for-move with Steph Curry and win his share?
Gordon Hayward (No. 25 on SI’s list) has a case, too – it’s going to be fun to get a refresher on what a complete player he is. Heck, it’s the first time we’ve really had a chance to see it.
The most enjoyable aspect of this team might discovering how much of a leap Jayson Tatum (39) and Jaylen Brown (47) make. Sorry to dwell on this, but had Tatum gotten a few shots in the final 4 minutes in Game 7 against Cleveland, they might have gone to the Finals. He’s stronger, and his teammates are raving about him. Kid is special.
As for Brown, he’s talking about how much he worked on his weaknesses (ball-handling, passing) in the offseason. He was a terrific, ascending player with those weaknesses. If he tightens things up, he might be a top-30 guy next year.
It’s Irving for me. But what do you guys think? Who will be the Celtics best player this year? I’ll hear you in the comments.
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