Now is as good a time as any to recognize the strides the Boston Celtics have taken over the last seven months.
The Athletic’s Jay King explained last week why he believes the Celtics now are in a better place than they were at the start of the season. Boston was 43-21 and in third place in the Eastern Conference standings March 11 when coronavirus concerns prompted the NBA to suspended its season indefinitely. But the 64 games the Celtics had played by then gave offered King plenty of evidence, on which he bases his opinion of the progress Boston has made.
“Yes. A concrete yes,” King replied when asked whether the Celtics have improved in 2019-20. “The Celtics still have questions to answer in the offseason, beginning with Hayward’s future. But they know now they can build around Walker, Tatum, Brown and Marcus Smart. They know they found a solid starting center in Daniel Theis. They know now that Robert Williams’s NBA career at least has a pulse. The Celtics could use bench help, a Hayward return and further development from their young studs, but they know now their core mix makes sense.”
Few will argue with King’s assessment, especially in light of the expectations that surrounded the team following Kyrie Irving’s and Al Horford’s departures last offseason in free agency. Yet, Boston’s chemistry improved, and the team exceeded those doomsday predictions.
The NBA will be on hiatus until at least May 10, and the Association reportedly hasn’t ruled out extending the season until September, if necessary. Whenever the Celtics return to competitive action, they’ll do so having eased doubts over their ability to compete in the present and future. Who knows? They might even benefit from the long layoff, as at least one NBA writer predicts.
