As I detailed in Monday’s newsletter, there was not much newsworthy content generated by the Knicks on Media Day, making them an anomaly in the Atlantic division. This was partly due to the fact that New York made very few changes this summer. As NBA.com noted, New York “retained their top seven (and 11 of their top 12) guys in regard to total minutes played last season. Those 11 guys accounted for 90% of the team’s 2022-23 regular-season minutes, the highest percentage of returning minutes for any team.”
Thus, the Knicks are relying on continuity, chemistry and internal improvement. The other clubs in New York’s division have made significant changes, leading to some interesting questions...
🏀 Boston:
The Celtics have taken the complete opposite approach. Brad Stevens and company overhauled a roster two wins away from an NBA championship just 15 months ago.
Boston’s reconstruction began in late June when they traded away Marcus Smart, Danilo Gallinari, Mike Muscala and the 35th overall pick in the 2023 Draft for Kristaps Porzingis, the 25th pick in the 2023 Draft (via Grizzlies) and a 2024 first-round pick (top-four protected, via Warriors).
Porzingis picked up his $36-million player option as part of the deal, resulting in Boston adding north of $7 million to their 2023-24 cap figure. The C's subsequently inked KP to a two-year, $60 million extension. In a corresponding move, the Celtics decided to let forward Grant Williams leave for Dallas via a four-year, $54 million sign-and-trade deal.
The Celtics capped off the summer by agreeing to a blockbuster deal with the Blazers, acquiring Jrue Holiday in exchange for Robert Williams III Malcolm Brogdon, Golden State's 2024 first-round pick and Boston's 2029 first-rounder.
The general consensus seems to be that the Celtics are in great shape. After the Holiday trade, Vegas Oddsmakers moved Boston ahead of the Denver Nuggets into a tie with the Milwaukee Bucks for the best odds to win the 2024 NBA Finals. According to former Celtic and current NBA Radio analyst Former Celtic Brian Scalabrine, the C’s have "by far" the best roster in the league. "If you talk to any coach in the NBA, they're saying to you right now, 'There's no way to guard this team.' And then, 'How are we gonna score on this team?'" Scalabrine declared. "Every NBA coach and general manager will tell you right now that this is by far the best roster in the NBA."
I don’t see it that way. I’ve always loved Holiday’s game, so this is no knock on that particular player; however, if we look at the totality of Boston’s moves in the aggregate, I’m not entirely convinced this offseason should be definitively viewed as a net positive.
The C's essentially swapped:
Marcus Smart (the heart and soul of the Celtics for the past few years)
Malcolm Brogdon (last season’s Sixth Man of the Year)
Rob Williams (Boston’s leader in blocks and rebounds per-36 minutes)
Grant Williams (underrated defensive presence)
For:
Kristaps Porzingis
Jrue Holiday
Looking at the big picture heading into the upcoming 2023-24 campaign, Boston is thin up front. They are now highly dependent on KP (who was unable to play in the FIBA World Cup due to plantar fasciitis in his right foot and has dealt with a myriad of injury issues throughout his career) and 37-year-old Al Horford.
Will these two be able to slow down Giannis? Who will defend Embiid, Jokic etc.?
There’s no denying that Boston’s upside is immense. The C’s top 6 (Derrick White, Holiday, Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, Porzingis and Horford) is arguably the best in the NBA. But that’s assuming they all stay healthy. And Horford continues to play at an incredibly high level on both ends of the floor in his 17th NBA season.
Boston still has plenty of draft capital at its disposal, so it will be fascinating to see how Brad Stevens fleshes out the rest of the roster, especially the frontcourt.
(As an aside, based on the Celtics traded away, we can surmise that the Knicks would have likely needed to give up Immanuel Quickley, Mitchell Robinson and multiple first-round picks to get in on the Holiday sweepstakes. It makes more sense for Boston to go all-in Jrue, as they feel they are just one piece away from a title. The Knicks are not in the same boat, so it was wise to steer clear.)
🏀 Philadelphia:
The good news for the Sixers is that after skipping Media Day and the first practice at training camp, James Harden finally decided he’d grace the team with his presence on Wednesday.
The bad news for Philly is that, according to Woj, Harden “wants to make the 76ers uncomfortable. So uncomfortable, ultimately, they don’t think they’ll get the best out of him and that they’ll make a trade.”
I'm not sure how Harden plans to achieve this lofty goal of unmatched uncomfortableness. Will he talk about politics and religion? Might The Beard ask a bunch of questions at the end of meetings instead of just letting the meeting wrap up? Will he force all his teammates to do some public speaking?
We’ll obviously keep a close eye on how the drama unfolds, especially if it leads to Joel Embiid (reigning MVP and Leon Rose's BFF) voicing frustration if/when the Sixers slump.
🏀 Toronto
Unlike the mess in Philadelphia, which has been well-documented by every major sports outlet in the land, the situation north of the border has barely generated any mainstream coverage. This is surprising, considering how the last few months have played out.
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to What's on Tap with Tommy Beer to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.