Celtics Bold Predictions Ahead of 2023-24 NBA Season
Expectations are again sky-high for the Boston Celtics, who are hoping the upcoming 2023-24 NBA season will be the one in which they finally fulfill their championship potential.
They've had multiple close calls in recent seasons, but their inability to seal the deal may have been the genesis of their summer shake-up. They wound up splitting from dominant defender and emotional leader Marcus Smart in a three-team trade that brought Kristaps Porziņģis to Boston.
It's a big shift—figuratively and literally—but it could pay big dividends. While we won't take a stab at projecting the Shamrocks' finish, we will lay out three bold predictions for their 2023-24 season.
Malcolm Brogdon Gets Traded
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When the Celtics first tried adding Porziņģis, Smart wasn't supposed to be the sacrificial lamb. Instead, Boston had dangled Malcolm Brogdon, but that variation of the trade fell apart.
Brogdon, though, apparently hasn't forgotten how close he was to the exits. He also may not have forgiven the franchise for nearly letting him go.
"He was not happy in July," Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe said on CLNS Media's Celtics Beat podcast. "Is he the same level of unhappiness in September? We don't know. He hasn't talked all summer. ... Malcolm Brogdon was not happy about the deal or being potentially dealt. He was pissed."
The Celtics had reasons for feeling they could get by without Brogdon—his availability issues presumably among them—and they could still reach the same conclusion, especially if they think Payton Pritchard and/or Dalano Banton can hold down rotation roles.
If Boston is content with its non-Brogdon options in the backcourt, it could make a lot of sense to trade the 30-year-old for wing depth.
Boston Has 3 All-NBA Selections
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Teammate All-NBA trios are seldom seen in the Association. The last squad to pull it off were the 2016-17 Golden State Warriors (Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry and Draymond Green).
But these Celtics just might have the high-end talent needed to pull this off.
Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown might be locks as long as they're healthy. The former has been an All-NBA first-teamer of the past two seasons, and the latter cracked the second team this past season.
Considering both might still be ascending toward their respective peaks, these feel like their spots to lose.
The wild card in this prediction is Porziņģis, who has never made an All-NBA team and only once earned an All-Star nod. But last season gave hope he might be putting his old injury problems behind him while also growing his game as a passer, off-the-dribble scorer and defender.
Give him a similar season (23.2 points, 8.4 rebounds, 2.1 threes and 1.5 blocks) with actual stakes attached to it, and that could be enough to earn his first All-NBA honor.
Jayson Tatum Is MVP
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Tatum was all-caps AWESOME last season, but that may not have been his peak.
Sure, there aren't a lot of ways to improve upon per-game contributions of 30.1 points, 8.8 rebounds and 4.6 assists, but this will only be his age-25 season. It's hard to imagine he is incapable of additional improvements.
His playmaking, for instance, could perk up with Smart no longer around to orchestrate the offense. Tatum has shown he can be a more accurate shooter from distance, too. While he has only connected on 35.2 percent of his long-range looks the past two seasons, he had a 39.6 percent splash rate over his four seasons prior,
Make those small—but significant—improvements, add a Celtics' win total in the neighborhood of 60, and you have the recipe for an MVP season for Tatum.
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