Boston Celtics: Can they win the East with Gordon Hayward next season?
Former Utah Jazz star Gordon Hayward has decided to take his talents to the Boston Celtics, but will it be enough for Boston to win the East?
The Boston Celtics won 53 games and finished atop of the East last season. Now, with the addition of Gordon Hayward, Boston appears to be looking at Cleveland eye-to-eye.
Yesterday, there was a complete whirlwind on Twitter after Chris Haynes of ESPN first reported that Gordon Hayward would sign with the Boston Celtics. In the minutes following the announcement, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweeted that Hayward’s agent said the star had yet to make a decision.
Then, several hours later, Hayward posted a behemoth of an article in The Players’ Tribune explaining his reasons for signing with Boston. It seems like someone from Boston leaked some information to the media, and then Hayward’s camp tried to convince everyone that he was still undecided.
Either way, Hayward left what has turned into an arms race in the West, and joined forces with Isaiah Thomas and Al Horford in the East. He fills a void for Boston, who were missing a scoring threat on the wing. Sure, Jae Crowder provided Boston with 13.9 points per night, but the Celtics needed a second player that could create shots for himself and others.
That’s exactly what Hayward can provide for Boston. The 27-year-old is coming off a career year in Utah, where he averaged 21.9 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game. Now entering his prime years, Hayward should be able to exceed his production in Utah, considering they were the slowest paced team in the NBA last season. Boston has a spaced floor with three-point shooters at every position, and Hayward should see more open looks playing alongside Isaiah Thomas.
Can the Celtics beat the Cavs?
After finishing in first place in the East and defeating the Washington Wizards in the playoffs, Boston asserted itself as the clear No. 2 team behind Cleveland. Unfortunately for Boston, they finished the season as only the second best team after being thumped by the Cavs in the Eastern Conference Finals.
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The addition of Gordon Hayward widens the gap between Boston and the third-best team in the East, whoever that may be. Washington could lose Otto Porter Jr. to the Brooklyn Nets if they don’t match a max offer sheet, and the Toronto Raptors will go into the 2017-18 season with basically the same core.
The Cavs don’t have enough cap space to sign a young, talented free agent. They will likely return with largely the same team they had a season before, barring a move for Carmelo Anthony if he decides to waive his no-trade clause.
LeBron James, Channing Frye, Kyle Korver, Richard Jefferson and J.R. Smith are all over 30 years old. James has only showed small signs of aging, like a drop off in his defense and noticeable fatigue late in games. Make no mistake, Cleveland goes as the King goes, and he can’t remain the best player in the world forever.
If LeBron were to take his talents West after next season, the Eastern Conference would be Boston’s to lose, as Cleveland is hardly a playoff team without James. Not to mention the No. 3 overall pick Jayson Tatum has an offensive repertoire that could turn him into a scoring machine.
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The current Boston core should have a three or four-year window to make a run at the Finals, and I like their chances…just maybe not for 2017 as currently constructed.