30 Teams in 30 Days: Boston Celtics

2007-2008 in Review

Record: 66-16
Eastern Conference Seed: 1
Playoff Results: Won NBA Finals vs. LAL (4-2)

Summer Of 2008

Key Additions: Patrick O’Bryant (via free agency), Darius Miles (via free agency), J.R. Giddens (via draft), Bill Walker (via draft).

Key Losses: James Posey (via free agency), P.J. Brown (via retirement), Sam Cassell (???).

It was but 12 months ago that basketball junkies across the nation were questioning the strength of Boston’s bench.

“Do they have enough behind the superstar trio? Will the supporting cast ruin any type of success that this team has a chance of attaining?”

Months later, the naysayers were silenced. However, they were not killed off, and may very well return this fall, as sixth man James Posey elected to decline his player option and sign a lucrative four-year contract with the New Orleans Hornets this summer.

Well aware of the fact that the loss of Posey’s toughness, length, defensive ability, versatility, and clutch shooting cannot be replaced by a single player, Danny Ainge elected to fill the hole with a “backup small forward by committee.” 

In the 2008 NBA Draft, he acquired swingmen J.R. Giddens (30th overall) and Bill Walker (via trade, 47th overall), who each have signed contracts with the club. Soon after, Ainge signed returning guard Tony Allen to a two-year deal worth $5 million total (using Bird Rights).

The savvy general manager even went as far as saying that Allen was a better defender than Posey, and is primed for a breakout year.

Then comes the wildcard—Darius Miles, who the Celtics signed to a non-guaranteed deal in late August. Miles not only has had his character questioned, but had specialists deem his damaged right knee a career-ending injury this past April.

Should Miles make the Celtics’ final roster and appear in at least 10 regular season games, the Trail Blazers would be forced to pay off the remaining $18 million of Miles’ contract, originally signed in August of 2004. First, however, Miles must serve the 10-game suspension recently issued by the league for violating the league’s anti-drug program (the drug was found out to be a diet pill).

With roughly half of the team’s mid-level exception, sharpshooter Eddie House was retained with a two-year deal—the second year containing a player option—giving the Celtics at least one reliable shooter off the bench to insert in the lineup down the stretch of ballgames.

The vacancy left by P.J. Brown's retirement called for a new backup center as well. To fill the hole, Boston turned to Golden State Warriors free agent and 2006 ninth-overall pick  Patrick O’Bryant. While raw and unproven, the 22-year-old big man gives the C’s something that they hadn’t had in a while—a long, athletic seven-footer.

The last five-man to dawn a Celtics uniform and fit that description was Mark Blount, who certainly didn’t make full use of his physical assets. With hard work and a little help from Clifford Ray, O’Bryant may have a chance to redeem his career in Beantown.

The status of Sam Cassell remains a mystery. In a recent interview, the 38-year-old guard noted that he was close to signing a contract with the Celtics—one year in length, with an option to return as an assistant coach in 2009-2010. Keep your eyes peeled for updates in the coming days, as you’d assume that if the team truly was sold on Cassell coming back as a player for this coming season, they would prefer him to be in camp on Monday. Time will tell.

Depth Chart

C: Kendrick Perkins / Patrick O'Bryant
PF: Kevin Garnett / Leon Powe / Glen Davis / Brian Scalabrine
SF: Paul Pierce / Darius Miles / Bill Walker
SG: Ray Allen / Tony Allen / J.R. Giddens
PG: Rajon Rondo / Eddie House / Gabe Pruitt

Biggest Strength: Team Defense

A year ago, the obvious conclusion would simply be “firepower—Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, and Paul Pierce together is scary.” And it still is, especially after taking the league by storm throughout the 2007-08 season—but that’s not why the men in green were able to earn the franchise’s 17th title this past June.

The reason that the 2008 Boston Celtics came out victorious was not because of Ray Allen’s sweet stroke, Kevin Garnett’s dream shake, or Paul Pierce’s step-back jumper. It was because of how this entire team bought into Tom Thibodeau’s defensive schemes, and displayed some of the best help defense the NBA has seen in a while—perhaps ever.

The big names of Allen, Garnett, and Pierce sold the tickets, but the defensive commitment won them the ring. As cliché as that sounds, it is truer than Paul Pierce’s nickname.

Biggest Weakness: Sloppiness

Oddly enough, the best 2008 NBA team just happened to be one of the most mistake-prone. Only Sacramento, Seattle, and Memphis turned the ball over more than the Celtics in the 2007-08 regular season, as Boston’s 15.2 TOPG clip ranked fourth-worst in the entire league.

In fact, the only other clubs to rank in the bottom-ten in turnovers and still manage to make the playoffs were Atlanta and Denver, who were each sent home at the conclusion of the first round.

Very seldom do NBA champs fail to take care of the ball like Boston did in 2007-08. If anything, that speaks volumes about how strong their strengths really are.

However, it is not ideal for Doc Rivers to watch his team fall that low in the turnover column in 2008-2009. With the additions of four players age 26 or under this offseason, it makes you question whether or not the flaw can be corrected.

X-Factor: Tony Allen

A strong case could be made for Rajon Rondo to be deemed Boston’s 2008-2009 x-factor, but there is a difference between he and “the other” Allen.

With Rondo, you expect improvement. You expect his postseason experience and extra summer of work to translate into better play on the court in his third season. On the contrary, you have absolutely no idea what to expect or make of Tony Allen. You did, however, know exactly what you were getting from James Posey each and every night this past season.

With Posey's services taken down south to the Big Easy, “TA” has a large pair of shoes to fill. Will he take advantage his brand spankin’ new opportunity and return to something similar to early-2007 form—or will he continue to issue Boston fans headaches strong enough to give a bottle of Tylenol a migraine?

What to Expect In 2008-09

By my estimation, the C’s are on top of the world, until proven otherwise. They may very well find themselves below last season’s 66-win plateau, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they are no longer the best team in basketball. Don’t think for one minute that this team is going to get comfortable and revert to settling for one ring—they’re going for the repeat.

Standings Predictions

58-24
First in Atlantic Division
First in Eastern Conference

Tomorrow: Charlotte Bobcats