The Boston Celtics made the bold decision to trade Jaylen Brown in the offseason. He was the best player for most of the season, but Brad Stevens decided to move on. Paul George will replace him in the starting lineup, which is who they got in return.
After the Brown trade, Boston has some things that they need to change. According to ESPN, the biggest hole on the roster has opened up because of the fact that Brown is no longer on the team.
Celtics Need a Player to Generate Free Throws
Ben Golliver of ESPN believes that Boston needs to find someone who can help generate more free throws. Golliver notes that Brown had a career high in free throws last season, and that will be hard to replace.
“While the Celtics’ decision to trade Brown for Paul George made sense as a long-term financial play, it created two immediate problems on the court. First, the 36-year-old George played less than half as many minutes as the 29-year-old Brown last season. Second, George attempted only 111 free throws in 2025-26 — a far cry from Brown’s 536, which easily represented a career high,” Golliver writes.
Jayson Tatum should help them in that regard now that he is fully healthy. Still, Boston needs more help in that area of the floor. Last season, no one generated fewer free throws per game than the Celtics, as they had just 18.7 free throws per game.
Despite not having a lot of free throws, Boston was still very successful on offense last season. With Tatum fully healthy, they feel that launching 42+ 3s will be a way for the team to still have success on that end of the floor. George will help that directive, as well.
However, Boston doesn’t have many players who like to drive in the paint without Brown on the roster. A lot of their guys like to do damage on the perimeter. Free throws are easy points for most NBA teams, and the Celtics are leaving those points on the table.
Boston is Still Considered a Top Title Contender
Even with Brown no longer on the team, the Celtics are still considered one of the top title contenders in the league. Figuring out the right combination off the bench will be a big determining factor in how deep they get in the postseason.
Only Denver had a better offense than the Celtics a year ago. That number is likely going down with George replacing Brown in the starting lineup. However, they believe that the defense will be better with Tatum back for a full season. George is still a solid defender, as well.
The trade deadline could offer some help, although they would need to get some cheap help. Boston still has some tax issues that they are trying to avoid. Still, they have some pieces they could move if they want to plug this hole further.
Biggest Roster Hole for the Boston Celtics Revealed