5 reasons the Boston Celtics will be worse next season

1. They fixed what wasn’t technically broken

The Celtics didn’t get to the first seed, to the Eastern Conference Finals with Gordon Hayward, Marcus Morris or Aron Baynes. This most recent team was the most successful it’s been this side of the 2010s, and they chunked it for a superstar.

The entire team has not been dissembled, but veteran leadership, defense and depth were all sacrificed in the process. Last year’s Celtics were run over by the Cavaliers, but this new team doesn’t look that much better suited for a championship run.

More from Hoops Habit

• The 5 most dominant NBA players who never won a championship
• 7 Players the Miami Heat might replace Herro with by the trade deadline
• Meet Cooper Flagg: The best American prospect since LeBron James
• Are the Miami Heat laying the groundwork for their next super team?
• Sophomore Jump: 5 second-year NBA players bound to breakout

Hayward will add scoring, but will he or Morris be enough to stop a player like LeBron James or Kevin Durant? It’s easy to say that the Celtics lack the firepower to compete with teams like the Warriors, especially after watching the team that dominated the Celtics get beat handily in the Finals.

The front office may not have thought its roster could win a championship, but this is also with plenty of Celtics playing out of their normal roles. Amir Johnson looked like a shell of his former self in a defense-first role, Horford was asked to play a position he does not prefer, and Jae Crowder was pushed into an undersized 4 position at times.

These might just be excuses for the Celtics’ recent acquisitions, but it needed to be said. They may have made a mistake and it should not be a surprise. They are taking a gamble, even though it involves a low-risk superstar in Hayward. The Celtics have made moves to solve one problem, but other issues still linger. They have options, but assuming immediate results is needless.

Next: 2017 NBA free agency tracker - Grades for every deal so far

Even with Hayward, the Boston Celtics have created a weird dynamic that is a mix between pushing for a championship and preparing for the future. Next season will be interesting, but expect them to spend most of the time finding the perfect balance rather than winning.