Boston Celtics: Team awards for each season of the 2010s
2016-17 Season
Defensive Player: Marcus Smart
If not overshadowed by Kelly Olynyk’s unexpected defensive numbers, Marcus Smart would be here three times already.
Smart, since coming out of Oklahoma State, displayed high energy and attention to detail on defense, something that is hard to teach on the NBA level. Many of his talents on draft day were special to him.
We all know how he impacts the game when he’s on the court today, an impact which I detailed in a recent article about Smart.
In this season, his third in the league, he played in 79 of 82 games, and his stats were great on defense.
He led the team in steals, and was tied for third in blocks, averaging 1.4 and .4, respectively.
His defensive rating sat at a nice 105.3, which was top five on the team. When he was on the bench, the Celtics’ team rating was 108.1; certainly a noticeable difference.
Fan Favorite: Isaiah Thomas
This was the season in which Isaiah Thomas really elevated his game into the top-5 player discussion.
Having the newly-signed Al Horford most definitely helped him with such drastic imporvement, as he had a player capable of being a secondary scorer.
Surrounding him were great defenders, and hustle players like rookie Jaylen Brown, Smart, Avery Bradley, and even Jae Crowder.
He was the most efficient he’d ever been, and led the team to the first seed in the Eastern Conference, over LeBron James and the Cavs.
If people thought fans loved IT throughout his first two seasons in Boston, the respect and love that people had for him hit a fever pitch.
His new nickname developed too, becoming King of the 4th quarter. To deserve such a nickname, he averaged 9.8 points in the fourth quarter, only turning the ball over .6 times per fourth. His increased play in crunch time was a huge reason for the Boston Celtics’ success in the season.
MVP: Isaiah Thomas
This shouldn’t have been a surprise to anybody reading.
Top three in MVP voting, a career-high in points per game (29.8), and efficient shooting percentages compared to previous seasons.
The real reason for him being the MVP is his play in the playoffs, which was equally as phenomenal.
Read. 3 Celtics who need a big final month. light
Some players have a question mark on them in the playoffs, meaning they disappear once the postseason starts. Individuals like that include James Harden, Russell Westbrook, and others.
Isaiah Thomas made it known fast that he should not be included in that list.
He averaged 23 points, 6.7 assists and 3.1 rebounds in the 2017 NBA playoffs, and even had one of the best performances in recent playoff history.
In the series against the Washington Wizards, news broke that his sister, Chyna, tragically passed away in a car accident. He proceeded to drop 53 on the Wizards in game two, in what would have been his sister’s 23rd birthday.
He led the team to their first Eastern Conference Finals appearance since 2011-12. They may have lost to the Cavs in five games, but no one in the NBA was left unimpressed by Thomas’ efforts.
He had a tremendous three seasons in Boston, and Celtics fans may have him to thank, in part, for them being where they are now.