Celtics must address the fact that they traded their best passer in Marcus Smart
Retooling the roster is fine, but the big improvement has to come in the way the Celtics play, and they are overdue for a lesson in ball movement.
Much of the discussion about Marcus Smart’s departure concerns topics other than his offense, understandably.
His toughness (no matter what), defensive prowess (when healthy), and leadership (excepting occasional overstepped bounds) are more satisfying discussion points for those of us still staggered by the three-way trade that sent the quintessential (for better and worse) recent Celtic to Memphis than talking about, oh, his shot selection.
But this must be acknowledged: Smart was the Celtics’ best passer. That’s somewhat faint praise and probably an indictment of some of his teammates — I think Malcolm Brogdon’s last drive-and-kick where he actually kicked was in early January — but I think it’s being overlooked how challenging that might be to replace, at least by those on the current roster.
That’s especially concerning if the Celtics approach offense the same uninspiring way they did this season under first-year coach Joe Mazzulla, which basically amounted to “shoot 3-pointers, and if they don’t go in, shoot some more 3-pointers, because math and stuff, and no, I’m not taking a timeout, so stop asking.”
Jayson Tatum can pass, and deserves credit for working to improve that aspect of his game, but he’s the All-NBA alpha, the one who should be taking the most shots virtually every night. Jaylen Brown isn’t a particularly willing or adept passer. Kristaps Porzingis? He is gifted offensive player, and highlights of him making nifty no-look passes aren’t hard to find on YouTube.
But Porzingis didn’t like playing with Luka Doncic in Dallas, which makes me wonder how he’s going to mesh with a ball-stopper of lesser accomplishment, like Brown. And as skilled as he is at passing, Porzingis doesn’t do it particularly often where it results in a teammate’s bucket. He averaged just 2.7 assists per game last season with the Wizards, or 1.2 more per game than Blake Griffin averaged in 13.9 minutes a night for the Celtics.
Smart, of course, had his own array of issues when the Celtics had the ball. His shot selection in the Heat series was contagiously bad, and let’s just say that was not out of character. He never seemed to realize, or care, that he was getting open shots because the opponent was deliberately enticing him to take them.
(Aside: I wonder if the now-former teammates sad to see Smart go realize that he’d probably still be here had they shown up to play before Game 4 against the Heat. Harsh? Yup. True? Indeed.)
When Smart was used as a true point guard, as an initiator, he took it seriously and played the role with pride, and the offense was usually better for it. Ime Udoka understood this, and while Smart didn’t always stay on the proper course, the Celtics’ previous coach had the gravitas to rein him in. I’m not sure Mazzulla could or wanted to.
I do know this: Using Smart as a bystander while Tatum and Brown take turns playing ISO ball at the top of the key while the shot clock winds down was detrimental deployment of your talent.
The suspicion here is that president of basketball operations Brad Stevens isn’t done with roster alterations. There almost has to be another guard coming in, and say, does anyone know if Derrick White might have a long-lost twin brother? The Celtics could use another of him.
Should the roster remain relatively static by the time the new season rolls around, there are still ways to improve it. There is room for growth for several players already here, including the two best.
Tatum doesn’t get much credit for doing this, but he always seems to return each season with an upgrade in one part of his game or another, and mastering a go-to move in the mid-range game should be at the top of his priorities.
Brown, a spectacular scorer when he’s locked in, also comes back better every year. His nightmarish eight turnovers in the final game of the season should stand as his only necessary reminder of what he needs to improve this offseason.
And is it too much to ask for Robert Williams to add a reliable 12-foot jumper?
But the most obvious improvement can come in how the Celtics play. Mazzulla’s favored let-it-fly offense is fine, I guess, but there needs to be an alternate plan on the nights when the bricks are piling up.
In his wee-hours-of-the-morning press conference after Thursday night’s draft, Stevens indicated that the Celtics aim to have more offensive flexibility in the season ahead, saying, “We didn’t post up a ton this year, but to be able to throw the ball in the post [to Porzingis] and just shoot over a switch and do it so efficiently and effectively is a big deal.”
A post-up, you say? For an easy two? Now that would be a change in philosophy and execution. Hey, we’re not asking these guys to move the ball like the ‘86 Celtics. But when the Celtics trade their best passer, and he was kind of a gunner, you know they’re way overdue for a lesson in sharing, and maybe a little inspiration too.
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