Boston Celtics: Pros and cons of Gordon Hayward as sixth man
By Joe Hagen
Pro: High quality playmaking in the second unit
One of the Boston Celtics’ greatest strengths is the sheer amount of playmakers on their roster. With guys like Kyrie Irving, Marcus Smart, Al Horford and Gordon Hayward, as well as positive signs of encouragement in that area from young guns Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, their overall talent as a team is complemented by guys willing to pass and share the ball (at least in theory).
With Terry Rozier as the acting point guard for the second unit, the ball doesn’t seem to skip around and the offensive runs like a poorly oiled, broken down machine. While that is squarely the fault of the point guard, asking Rozier to play the role of a playmaker/spot-up shooter is quite frankly out of the realm of possibility. He’s much better served as a gunner with limited touches then he is a Walmart version of Chris Paul.
The Celtics are much better off with letting Gordon Hayward have sole possession to the keys of the offense when Kyrie Irving is in need of a breather. From the wing, Hayward has tremendous instincts with the ball in his hands and has the offensive skill-set to be effective from each level of the floor.
As the season wears on, Hayward may be one of a handful of players who’s actually looking like he’s getting more athletic and energetic. With some of that rediscovered athleticism, Hayward can attack the paint and draw defenders to him, collapsing the defense and can either kick out to teammates or take it to hole himself.
Ideally, the Celtics will not exactly have a second unit in the playoffs in the traditional sense; it’s unlikely Brad Stevens will trot out five backups at any given time. However, whenever Kyrie is not in the game, it could be in Boston’s best interest to let the ball run through Hayward, especially on the perimeter where he’ll be surrounded by capable knockdown shooters.