Hello, hello! The Boston Celtics’ 2024-25 regular season is in the books. For the second straight year, Joe Mazzulla’s team has ended the campaign with 60 or more wins — the last time that happened was 2008 and 2009 with the Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce roster.
Both teams sat their primary rotation. We got to see a lot of some high-level role players and even more from deep-bench guys and developmental talents. So, forgive me if today’s takeaways are a little less in-depth than normal — there’s only so much you can garner from the final game of the season.
Anyway, let’s dive in.
#1 Kornet was everywhere
Without the top-six rotation, the Celtics looked to Luke Kornet to assume a bigger role within the rotation. One thing I want to quickly point out, is that we’ve seen Kornet become one of the best non-shooting bigs in the NBA over the past 18 months or so. Most young bigs coming into the league should study his ability to operate on the perimeter without being a shooting threat.
Against the Hornets, Kornet stuck to the basics: he screened well, spaced the floor in the weakside slot, and ran some play initiation when working in the delay ( a fancy way of saying he had the ball on the perimeter as part of a five-out).
However, the below play is the one that undoubtedly garned the most attention from Celtics fans, as it ended up with Kornet taking a one-dribble mid-range jumper.
I know that Kornet taking the middie was a fun wrinkle, but for me, it was the decision-making that led to him taking the shot. Boston had flowed into a secondary action, which turned out to be a zoom action (a pin-down into a hand-off), with Baylor Scheierman elected to receive the rock.
Josh Okogie did a fantastic job of sticking with Scheierman off the pin-down and getting himself between Scheierman and Kornet, thus denying the hand-off. Rather than let the play fizzle out, Kornet rejected the hand-off and flowed straight into a counter, which ended up being his mid-range shot.
The fact that Kornet is recognizing the counter so quickly is a major plus for Boston. He isn’t just reading the game; he’s starting to attack those reads with snappy decision-making.
Oh, and if you want to make it even more fun, that offensive possession came off the back of a Kornet block on the defensive end.
Kornet has become the type of player who finds ways to impact a game. Sometimes, that means he’s setting three, four or even five screens on one possession. Other times, he’s picking out a pass, either in the delay or on the short-roll. And others, he’s containing opposing ball-handlers when defending the pick-and-roll or blocking shots at the rim.
I wanted to share the above clip as the first takeaway because, for me, Kornet has been one of the most fun developmental stories of the season.
#2 Payton Pritchard is ridiculously good
Kornet may have been one of the most fun stories, but Payton Pritchard sits atop the list. I mean, seriously, what’s not to like? Pritchard plays his role, comes up big when needed and relishes the opportunity to lead the offense for stretches. So, when he was given the start against Charlotte, you knew he was going to do his best to show out.
34 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists…I think it’s safe to say it was mission completed for the Sixth Man of the Year shoo-in (I hope).
Earlier this season, Pritchard detailed the work he’d put into developing a range of shot options for himself, ensuring he was always a threat to score.
“It’s just putting myself in different situations,” Pritchard said. “It’s not necessarily doing a certain drill; it’s certain situations where they’re guarding me, what’s the right shot to get to here? If they play it a certain way, if I’m on this side of the court and they guard me at this angle, then I should get to this shot, these shots. Just having an arsenal for those different things.”
I’m sure that throughout the regular season, Azad and whoever else has written these takeaways have spoken glowingly of Pritchard’s perimeter-scoring exploits. Rightly so, too.
But, for me, this simple reverse layup stood out against Charlotte.
Last season, Pritchard added ‘bump creation’ to his repertoire, creating space by bumping into his opponent. This season, he’s added the ability to finish directly off the bounce, both around the rim and elsewhere on the floor. For me, his offensive game began to flourish once he proved he was a threat to score at the rim, despite his lack of size.
Layups like the clip above unlocked everything for Pritchard, so seeing him continue to keep defenses honest when the game has little meaning was an enjoyable illustration of his competitiveness.
#3 Baylor Scheierman should be a rotation player next season
I get that his box score doesn’t look pretty. But Baylor Scheierman plays with a swagger. A braggadocious flair that makes him unpredictable when the ball is in his hands. Scheierman continues to showcase his passing ability, especially when threading the needle or picking passes out of thin air.
I also like the growth we’ve seen from Scheierman on the defensive end. He doesn’t have the athleticism or burst to hang with a lot of NBA forwards, so, he’s begun to play the angles, using his size and IQ to cut off lanes or control the space a ball-handler has available to them.
To begin the season, Scheierman looked like he would need a year or two to be ready for the NBA. The speed of his improvements, the confidence he plays with, and the swagger he brings to the court all mean that I’m expecting (more like hoping) that he makes the core rotation next season.
#4 JD Davison needs to be more confident shooting threes
JD Davison has earned his shot with the Celtics. He’s steadily improved his game during his three seasons in Maine and has patiently waited for his opportunity. However, now that he’s officially part of Joe Mazzulla’s roster, he needs to get more comfortable with letting the rock fly from deep.
I’m a fan of Davison’s floater game. I think it’s a great part of his skill set, especially with how he likes to throw lob passes and the confusion it can cause for defenders. Nevertheless, I can’t imagine Mazzulla was best pleased when Davison hesitated on the perimeter while wide open before opting to take a mid-range two. I imagine this will be a key area of improvement for Davison in the coming months.
#5 Jordan Walsh reminds me of Aaron Nesmith on defense
Not in the way that Aaron Nesmith was known as ‘crash’ for his sometimes overzealous hustle plays. But in the sense that Jordan Walsh often seems a little sped up, maybe somewhat out of control, but somehow, someway, he consistently provides a positive impact on the defensive end.
Walsh is still raw. He’s still figuring things out and learning from his mistakes. However, no one can question the effort, hustle and intensity he brings off the bench. In that way, I do think he reminds me a little bit of Nesmith.
#6 A first-quarter run set the tone
The Celtics went on a 16-2 run between the 10-minute and 4-minute mark in the first quarter. During that time, the Hornets went 1-of-11 from the field and 0-of-5 from deep. That little 6-minute run set the tone for the rest of the game. Boston’s reserves had control and grew in confidence.
A 12-point collapse in the third drew things close, as the Hornets made the most of a 1-of-7 shooting slump from Scheierman. However, a 7-point, 5-point, and 7-point run, all in the fourth quarter, helped the Celtics end the regular season on a high note.
#7 Torrey Craig may need to show more
Torrey Craig was signed to be a veteran presence on the bench and break-glass insurance policy at the forward position. At this point, we’ve all spoken, debated, and fretted about Jaylen Brown’s knee injury and what that could mean during the playoffs. Well, if Brown is out for whatever reason, Craig could find his number being called to step into the rotation.
Over the last two games, Craig has totaled 40 minutes of playing time. He’s provided reliable defense during those minutes while also pulling down a total of 12 rebounds and dishing out five assists. But do you know what he hasn’t done? Score. He’s got 2 points in 40 minutes, stretching two games.
If, for whatever reason, Craig is pushed into a bigger-than-expected role during the postseason, the Celtics will need him to find some rhythm on offense. Hitting just one bucket against a Hornets team missing all of its starters is far from encouraging.
#8 It was supposed to be scrappy
That’s what happens when you sit your primary rotations and give some of the younger guys and aging veterans a chance to play. I mean, we had Taj Gibson crashing the glass at age 39. We also had 19-year-old Tidjane Salaun trying to break down Boston’s defense.
With such a diverse range of players, ages, and developmental players, the game was never going to rival what we saw from the LA Clippers and Golden State Warriors later in the day. It wasn’t supposed to, either. Boston took care of their business through the regular season.
Charles Lee’s team is still a work in progress, but credit to him for the work he’s doing over there.
Anyway, I was fine with the scrappy nature of the game. In some ways, it kept the game interesting and was certainly a lot of fun.
#9 Who do you fear? Orlando or Atlanta?
Quick one here…I’m more scared of the Orlando Magic. I get the Atlanta Hawks and the Dyson Daniel of it all, the Trae Young of it all, and the Quin Snyder of it all. I get that Atlanta typically gives the Celtics some problems, too. But Paolo Banchero is no joke. None of that Magic team are a joke. For me, they are the team I want to avoid in the opening round. What about you?
#10 Bring on the playoffs!
The regular season is over. Now, we enter the countdown to another championship (fingers crossed). This Celtics team is ready. If they can stay healthy, play their style of basketball, and rediscover the same defensive intensity as last season, then the duck boats will be out in force later in the summer.
I, for one, can’t wait for this playoff run. It will be the first one I cover for the Celtics Chronicle newsletter, so no matter what, it will be memorable for me.
I hope you’re all excited for what’s to come, too! And have enjoyed the season thus far!
Go C’s!
