Aron Baynes’ successful gamble will be the Boston Celtics’ loss
By Kane Pitman
Consistent rebounding and defense
While the expanded offensive versatility added a new a string to his bow, his bread and butter will always be defensive presence and rebounding.
On the league’s No. 1 defense, Baynes held the best individual defensive rating on the roster of 97.0. Hardly an explosive athlete, Baynes is able to assert his dominance on that end of the floor through physicality and positioning. A vocal leader on that end of the floor, Baynes consistently puts his body on the line for his team (to the delight of the online basketball community).
The delight comes through Baynes being the regular victim of opposition poster dunks. In speaking with ESPN, Baynes explained why he couldn’t care less about the threat of being posterized.
"“My job is to try to make every shot attempt of the opponent’s as tough as I can. If that’s me putting my body on the line then each time I’m going to step up and do it,” Baynes said. “It’s fun for me. I like it when guys are focused on [trying to dunk on] me because then they’re not focused on their game.”"
How can you not admire a guy with an attitude like that?
On top of defensive positioning, Baynes has always been a guy that will hit the glass on both ends. Baynes averages 10.5 total rebounds and 3.6 offensive rebounds per 36 minutes over his career, more than adequate numbers.
In a further illustration of his work down low, NBA.com recorded box outs per game during the 2018 NBA Playoffs, with Baynes finishing 10th in the league with 9.5 per game. This figure becomes more impressive when you consider he ranked second in the playoffs among players that averaged fewer than 25 minutes per game, only trailing Miami rookie Bam Adebayo.
He’s not flashy, but he’s effective. Baynes’ impact was felt in Boston in more ways than statistical numbers, however, which leads us to our next slide.