‘Weakest Link’ Within Celtics Starting Rotation Revealed

After falling short of banner No. 18 in three straight Eastern Conference Finals appearances, the Boston Celtics made a splashy trade that brought star big Kristaps Porziņģis to eastern Massachusetts.

With this obvious upgrade to their starting lineup, the Celtics’ “weakest link” is now Robert Williams III or Al Horford, or “whoever starts at the 5,” according to Bleacher Report’s Andy Bailey.

“Despite coach Joe Mazzulla’s hesitance to use jumbo, two-big lineups last season, starting Porziņģis and burying one of Horford or Williams as the third-string center feels unlikely,” Bailey wrote in a July 27 story about each NBA team’s weakest link. “And whichever one starts alongside KP will almost certainly be the weak link in this starting five. But this is one of those situations where the term ‘weak’ is relative.”

Though the label seems to connote a disadvantage, both are good players who’ll raise the Celtics’ defensive ceiling and neither is anywhere close to a negative asset.

“Horford is 37 years old, and Williams has struggled with durability throughout his career, Bailey wrote. “They’re just not on the same level as three players who’ll contend for All-Star nods in 2023-24 (Porziņģis, Brown and Tatum) and one of the game’s best defensive guards in Derrick White.”

In a five-man rotation stacked with three proven stars and a steady, two-way backcourt presence like Derrick White, each will undoubtedly be viewed as the lesser of the bunch.

But Williams and Horford have proved to be sensational contributors for Boston. Last season, they finished first and fourth, respectively, in net rating out of those who logged 800 or more minutes on the Celtics.

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Robert Williams Working on Jumper

Coming into year six of his career, Williams appears to be working on adding another element to his game. Trainer Aaron Miller tweeted on July 18 a video of Williams cashing in on mid- to-long range jump shots during the offseason.

Williams has established himself as more of an old-school, rim-running and paint-protecting pivot presence who has shied away from expanding his offensive placement beyond the paint. During his five NBA seasons, the 25-year-old has attempted a total of 69 outside shots, hitting just 26 of them (a 37.6% clip).

Adding a consistent jumper to his game would only make Williams an even more tantalizing presence on the hardwood, even if he was used more as a decoy than anything else.

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Celtics Legend Sticks Up for Jaylen Brown

Following Jaylen Brown’s historic $304 million contract extension to remain with the Celtics long-term, critics voiced negative opinions on the signing, with ESPN’s Zach Lowe saying that multiple executives told him it may not be wise for Boston to the wing that much considering, in their eyes at least, he isn’t even the second best player on the team.

“I’ve had a couple of people in opposing front offices tell me something along the lines of ‘Are the Celtics really gonna pay their third or fourth or fifth best player all this money?’” Lowe said on the July 25 episode of “The Lowe Post” podcast.

Upon hearing such rumblings, Celtics legend Kevin Garnett came to the defense of the two-time All-Star and recently established All-NBA talent, questioning the concept of how one could suggest Brown to be ranked so low within his own team’s pecking order.

“Huh? Bron, KD, and Steph play for Boston now? Tf,” Garnett tweeted.

Brown is coming off a career-best season in which he finished with stellar per-game averages of 26.6 points, 6.9 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 1.1 steals while shooting 49.1% from the field.

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