Avery Bradley: Evaluating His Season and Projecting Next Year

Since the day he was drafted, I always said that Avery Bradley was going to be a good player. This idea was often laughed at during his rookie campaign in which he was either on the bench or in the D-League for the majority of the season. 

Still though, I remained firm in my belief that he was going to be a solid player. And eventually, my faith in Bradley combined with his huge jump during his second season made me look like a genius, which is always nice.

In a way though, he even exceeded my own expectations. I knew he could be a great defender, but I had no idea how much he would be able to change games with his defense alone. 

He made life very hard for opposing guards and offenses. While he harassed the other team's guards, they couldn't set up the offense. Therefore, the opposing team wouldn't start their offense until late in the shot clock. 

Because of this, the rest of the Celtics defense only needed to defend for around 14 seconds every possession which made their job a lot easier and played a big role in the dominance of the Celtics D this season.

This defensive impact quickly became commonplace for Bradley. It gave him confidence and his confidence would later fuel his offense. He became more and more comfortable shooting and taking the ball to the hoop.

As a result, his offense improved every month throughout the season, culminating in an incredible month of April in which he was nominated for Player of the Month honors. During April, he averaged 15 points a game on over fifty-percent shooting from the floor and from the three-point line. 

Unfortunately though, he could never replicate that kind of play in the playoffs because of a bad shoulder injury. This shoulder injury would end the playoffs early for him and force him to miss the Eastern Conference Finals.

If he had been able to play in the Eastern Conference Finals, then there is no doubt in my mind that the Celtics would have at least advanced to the NBA Finals. Again, yet another "what-if" from the Celtics season.

Grade: A

What he must improve on for next year

Defensively, there is hardly any room for improvement for Bradley. He is as good as they come in terms of defensive guards.

On the offensive end, he proved that he is solid as well with a much improved jump shot and a knack for finishing around the rim. For the most part, he gets shots in the paint from his keen sense of when to cut to the hoop.

Occasionally, he will drive the ball too, but he does not do this as often as he could. Part of the reason for this is his struggles handling the ball.

Dribbling and passing certainly aren't Bradley's strong suit and he could use some improvement in both areas. Of the most immediate concern is his dribbling because with better handles, he could drive to the hoop more and score more.

He doesn't need to make huge improvements in his handles but incremental gains in his dribbling abilities would really benefit his game.

Expectations for next year

For Bradley, there were virtually no expectations coming into last season. Now, just one season later, the expectations have risen considerably.

Next year he will continue to dominate on the defensive end like no other guard in the league. I would be shocked if he doesn't make first-team all defense next season. Heck, he may even get a few votes for Defensive Player of the Year.

Offensively, he will score in the low double digits every game and provide a big boost as at best the fourth scoring option. 

His all-around great play could make the potential loss of Ray Allen a lot easier for the Celtics. It would be out with the old and in with the new for the Celtics if 36-year-old Allen doesn't return and 21-year-old Bradley takes full control over the shooting guard position. And in no way would that be a bad thing.

 Check out Brandon Bass' season grade, what he needs to improve on and expectations for next year: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1233058-brandon-bass-evaluating-his-season-and-projecting-next-year