Celtics 2025-26, Season Thread

[Gant]

so garza is a stretch 5 & queta was hitting 3s in the euros. how exactly do we not have a stretch 5 on the roster this year? is that gamesmanship by mazzulla or what

Garza shot .278 from 3 last year. Queta took a total of three 3 pointers last year.

Hopefully they'll both develop the long ball, but they're not there yet as far as hitting threes with a high percentage and high volume.

[brackdan70]

so garza is a stretch 5 & queta was hitting 3s in the euros. how exactly do we not have a stretch 5 on the roster this year? is that gamesmanship by mazzulla or what

Garza shot .278 from 3 last year. Queta took a total of three 3 pointers last year.

Hopefully they'll both develop the long ball, but they're not there yet as far as hitting threes with a high percentage and high volume.

Seems like Queta was taking 1 or more a game during Euro basket….and making some. I wouldn’t mind that out of him.

[brackdan70]

so garza is a stretch 5 & queta was hitting 3s in the euros. how exactly do we not have a stretch 5 on the roster this year? is that gamesmanship by mazzulla or what

Maybe Joe just does not like to call them stretch 5.

Guess they're called Centers who shoot 3s.

Al wasn’t a stretch 5 till the Celtics, he barely started taking them the season before we got him.

Right…we forget this. He made 21 3s before his 29th birthday.

[Gant]

so garza is a stretch 5 & queta was hitting 3s in the euros. how exactly do we not have a stretch 5 on the roster this year? is that gamesmanship by mazzulla or what

Garza shot .278 from 3 last year. Queta took a total of three 3 pointers last year.

Hopefully they'll both develop the long ball, but they're not there yet as far as hitting threes with a high percentage and high volume.

Seems like Queta was taking 1 or more a game during Euro basket….and making some. I wouldn’t mind that out of him.

Queta's been spending time every day for at least a few years practicing threes and may eventually get to where he can hit a decent percentage. He's often up top anyway setting picks so popping out after that is simple. It's one of many areas he's been working on to diversify his offense including jumpers, floaters and hooks. I don't know if he'll look to take those shots early on. He's been reluctant up til now looking for his offense.

[Celts17Pride]

Joe Mazzulla mentioned in two different interviews yesterday that the Celtics don't have any stretch 5's this year so it will be really interesting to see how Mazzulla plans to use the bigs. Tillman said he has been shooting 3's all summer and Boucher will shoot the 3, going to be interesting to see Garza and Queta

[cloverleaf]

so garza is a stretch 5 & queta was hitting 3s in the euros. how exactly do we not have a stretch 5 on the roster this year? is that gamesmanship by mazzulla or what

Garza shot .278 from 3 last year. Queta took a total of three 3 pointers last year.

Hopefully they'll both develop the long ball, but they're not there yet as far as hitting threes with a high percentage and high volume.

Tillman was pitching himself for that role on media day.

[cloverleaf]

Garza shot .278 from 3 last year. Queta took a total of three 3 pointers last year.

Hopefully they'll both develop the long ball, but they're not there yet as far as hitting threes with a high percentage and high volume.

Seems like Queta was taking 1 or more a game during Euro basket….and making some. I wouldn’t mind that out of him.

Queta's been spending time every day for at least a few years practicing threes and may eventually get to where he can hit a decent percentage. He's often up top anyway setting picks so popping out after that is simple. It's one of many areas he's been working on to diversify his offense including jumpers, floaters and hooks. I don't know if he'll look to take those shots early on. He's been reluctant up til now looking for his offense.

Kornet's a career 32% from 3, but Joe didn't let him take any.

[Fierce1]

Trying to figure out Joe will make you nuts.

The key to understanding Joe is to just go with the flow.

Joe is always playing mind games with reporters.

[Curmudgeon]

Garza's going to score if given the opportunity. The question is, what happens when he has to go out and defend in space? Horford and even Kornet could do a creditable job of that, but we don't know about Garza. If Garza can't he will be hunted and eventually Boucher or Minott will take most of of his minutes.

[tfribs45]

it's nice the see the tank mafia fade away. these guys are professionals and will go all out! should be a fun season, still expecting top 6 in the East. Lets go

[2Mas]

Trying to figure out Joe will make you nuts.

The key to understanding Joe is to just go with the flow.

Joe is always playing mind games with reporters.

No he's not?

He said there's no stretch 5s cause Garza is an adequate shooter from 3 & Queta can't shoot.

Boucher is probably a 4.

This isn't "mind games"

[Hal14]

Seems like Queta was taking 1 or more a game during Euro basket….and making some. I wouldn’t mind that out of him.

Queta's been spending time every day for at least a few years practicing threes and may eventually get to where he can hit a decent percentage. He's often up top anyway setting picks so popping out after that is simple. It's one of many areas he's been working on to diversify his offense including jumpers, floaters and hooks. I don't know if he'll look to take those shots early on. He's been reluctant up til now looking for his offense.

Kornet's a career 32% from 3, but Joe didn't let him take any.

He didn't take any when Ime was the coach either.

Luke has said that he stopped taking 3's because of injuries which took place prior to Boston.

[Celts17Pride]

it's nice the see the tank mafia fade away. these guys are professionals and will go all out! should be a fun season, still expecting top 6 in the East. Lets go

I have never been in the tank group ever, just don't believe in it (Sorry ML Carr). I would love for the Celtics to be a Top 3 seed or 6th seed and I will be rooting for that to happen. I still just don't think the front court and the defense is going to be good enough but I'm ready to be pleasantly surprised.

[redslastlaugh]

It's nice to have the 5-out look with a 3pt shooting big, but overreliance on 3's can be crutch

since the bubble, most of the teams that made the Finals, had a high minute big that wasn't a 3pt shooting bigman

Dwight Howard
Bam Adebayo
Kevon Looney
Giannis Antetokounmpo
Deandre Ayton
Robert Williams
Isaiah Hartenstein
Gafford/Lively

If Garza can make shots and provide a shooting option at the 5, then we can get some big man stuff out of Queta/Tillman like dunks, paint touches, boards, getting FTs, short roll passing -- that'd be fine with me. I'm much looking forward to some big man stuff this year, even from Amari Williams (hopefully).

Luke gave us physical play last year, but KP seemed to always have injury/flu issues, and Al had aged out to the 3pt line and didn't draw FTs or challenge opposing bigs in the paint. A new group of hungry, young centers is something I am really looking forward to this season

Joe Mazzulla mentioned in two different interviews yesterday that the Celtics don't have any stretch 5's this year so it will be really interesting to see how Mazzulla plans to use the bigs. Tillman said he has been shooting 3's all summer and Boucher will shoot the 3, going to be interesting to see Garza and Queta

[Fierce1]

Brad can also improve the roster on or before trade deadline.

So it's not like what we have now is what we'll be seeing after All-Star break.

[bucknersrevenge]

Joe Mazzulla mentioned in two different interviews yesterday that the Celtics don't have any stretch 5's this year so it will be really interesting to see how Mazzulla plans to use the bigs. Tillman said he has been shooting 3's all summer and Boucher will shoot the 3, going to be interesting to see Garza and Queta

I feel like we might see a lot of Horns sets. Bigs handling and making passes to backdoor cutting wings. Also bigs running plenty of DHOs into short rolls with the occasional weakside cutter. Also it wouldn't surprise me to see some screens set highers above the arc from time to time to get guys like PP, Simons, and JB downhill earlier. All 3 are lethal on hi screen/roll action. With so much emphasis on playing faster Luka mentioned something recently about getting into screening actions quicker. Setting them higher in some occasions the way we did when we had IT in that Chicago series might get someone downhill. Also maybe a set where Tillman or Garza set a backpick for a win at the break for someone like JB or Minott to flash to the rim and depending on the read, maybe they pop out for an open 3. I could see all of that.

[Gant]

Garza shot .278 from 3 last year. Queta took a total of three 3 pointers last year.

Hopefully they'll both develop the long ball, but they're not there yet as far as hitting threes with a high percentage and high volume.

Seems like Queta was taking 1 or more a game during Euro basket….and making some. I wouldn’t mind that out of him.

Queta's been spending time every day for at least a few years practicing threes and may eventually get to where he can hit a decent percentage. He's often up top anyway setting picks so popping out after that is simple. It's one of many areas he's been working on to diversify his offense including jumpers, floaters and hooks. I don't know if he'll look to take those shots early on. He's been reluctant up til now looking for his offense.

Here's a clip of Tillman shooting threes, but the interesting thing is at the end. Queta's working on that very thing, popping out after setting high picks.

Bobby Krivitsky‬

Xavier Tillman Sr. is a man of his word.

You can also see Sam Cassell coaching up Neemias Queta on pick-and-pop 3s.

https://bsky.app/profile/bobbykrivitsky.bsky.social/post/3m2cutctlzs22


Also Boucher.

Bobby Krivitsky‬

A look at Chris Boucher knocking down one three after another on the heels of Celtics practice.

Boucher told me figuring out the best spots for him to shoot from was at the root of his career year from behind the arc last season.

https://bsky.app/profile/bobbykrivitsky.bsky.social/post/3m2cuvycbsc22

[brackdan70]

Seems like Queta was taking 1 or more a game during Euro basket….and making some. I wouldn’t mind that out of him.

Queta's been spending time every day for at least a few years practicing threes and may eventually get to where he can hit a decent percentage. He's often up top anyway setting picks so popping out after that is simple. It's one of many areas he's been working on to diversify his offense including jumpers, floaters and hooks. I don't know if he'll look to take those shots early on. He's been reluctant up til now looking for his offense.

Here's a clip of Tillman shooting threes, but the interesting thing is at the end. Queta's working on that very thing, popping out after setting high picks.

Bobby Krivitsky‬

Xavier Tillman Sr. is a man of his word.

You can also see Sam Cassell coaching up Neemias Queta on pick-and-pop 3s.

https://bsky.app/profile/bobbykrivitsky.bsky.social/post/3m2cutctlzs22


Also Boucher.

Bobby Krivitsky‬

A look at Chris Boucher knocking down one three after another on the heels of Celtics practice.

Boucher told me figuring out the best spots for him to shoot from was at the root of his career year from behind the arc last season.

https://bsky.app/profile/bobbykrivitsky.bsky.social/post/3m2cuvycbsc22

Boucher has a nice fluid and quick stroke.

[Parliament10]

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[Fierce1]

Looks like JT now has that NBA body.

He should be stronger and his shooting % should go up with more points inside the paint.