After failing to make the NBA Finals after making the Eastern Conference Finals three of the last four years, this year could be “make or break” for the Boston Celtics. Head coach Brad Stevens is one of the best, young coaches in the NBA and it would be completely and utterly stupid for the Celtics to blame him for them not making the NBA Finals, but it could be easy to blame some of the players.
If Marcus Smart and Jaylen Brown do not step up and perform at a high level this year, they could very well be on the move next offseason as the Celtics are in a position to win now. They have been linked to various offseason trade rumors for big-time names, such as Kevin Love and Myles Turner, but no trades were ever solidified.
With Kemba Walker out to begin the season and the Celtics set to play 9 games against potential playoff teams in their first 11 games, Danny Ainge and the Celtics’ front office may be willing to make a move to solidify this team as one of the best in the NBA sooner than later.
Kemba Walker’s knee issues have long been documented and he has had several issues dating back to his college days at UCONN, which can be concerning for the Celtics moving forward. They put a lot of faith in Kemba last year and believed he was the guy they needed in order to finally make the NBA Finals, but they still fell short and lost to the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals.
A lot of the blame definitely has to go on the Boston Celtics’ bench though as management has constantly put a lot of money into the starting rotation, but has never given Brad Stevens a reliable, solid bench to work with. Last season, the Celtics had the 2nd worst bench in the NBA in terms of scoring per game and as a result, they fell short of their goal once again.
Cutting ties with Kemba Walker now and being able to get two key role players, one of which could very well end up as a great Sixth-Man for them, could be exactly what this team needs to push themselves into the NBA Finals and could be what they need to finally win another championship.
Let’s take a look at who the Boston Celtics could potentially get out of trading Kemba Walker to the Orlando Magic.
