Boston Celtics: 3 takeaways from the preseason opener

3. The Celtics will stick with an eight or nine man rotation

The Boston Celtics started the game with a lineup of Kyrie Irving, Gordon Hayward, Jaylen Brown, Al Horford and Aron Baynes. Then, Brad Stevens inserted rookie Jayson Tatum, Marcus Smart and Terry Rozier in the first half.

Since Marcus Morris is dealing with a legal situation, Baynes got the nod to start at center. When the season starts, we will definitely see a rotation including Irving, Hayward, Brown, Morris, Horford, Tatum, Smart and Rozier.

It’s unclear how many minutes Baynes will receive off of the bench, but this undersized Boston Celtics team could use him. At 6’10” and 260 pounds, Baynes can matchup with most centers and offer some rim protection for a Boston team that desperately needs it.

It’ll be interesting to see if Stevens goes with Brown or Smart to fill the 2-guard spot. Both guys can get after it on defense and drive into the lane on offense, but Brown has the size advantage over Smart. The rest of the preseason will probably decide which player gets the starting role.