As the Boston Celtics prepare to embark on another journey throughout the NBA playoffs, they might be in for some good news.
The NBA’s play-in tournament kicked off Tuesday, meaning ballots have been cast, and voting is behind us when it comes to the league’s All-NBA, All-Defensive and All-Rookie teams.
Just as he did with the NBA’s end-of-season awards, ESPN’s Zach Lowe — a long-time voter on each of the major awards and teams — was fully transparent and revealed his ballot to the public Thursday. Though the Celtics were notably absent from the awards list, they were well represented on the All-NBA teams.
Here is how the Celtics were represented on Lowe’s ballot.
All-NBA First Team: Jayson Tatum (F)
All-NBA Third Team: Jaylen Brown (F)
All-Defense First Team: Derrick White (G)
Jayson Tatum’s place on the first team is an obvious choice, but seeing Brown squeak onto the third team would be tremendous news for the Celtics. In making All-NBA, Brown would be heavily incentivized to re-sign in Boston. Why? Well, it would make the 26-year-old eligible to make approximately $10 million more per season if he garners the honor, with only the Celtics being able to offer him that much.
Here was Lowe’s explanation on the Brown decision:
Brown was a tougher choice. Advanced metrics have never loved him for a combination of reasons — shaky playmaking, blah rebounding, hazy off-ball defense, and that Boston’s scoring margin typically declines when Brown plays without Tatum.
But 27 points, 7 boards, 3.5 dimes, 58% shooting on 2s, and very good on-ball defense against any type of perimeter scorer — that’s All-NBA quality, as much as anything (Pascal) Siakam, (Julius) Randle, and (Lauri) Markkanen did. Brown was durable, and his team is in a different stratosphere than the Raptors, Knicks, and Jazz. He (barely) gets the nod.
While the eventual goal will always revolve around the Larry O’Brien Trophy, seeing Brown secure an honor that could help him stick around Boston for the long haul is a solid end-of-season reward for the Celtics.
