Sophmores, 2020-21 – Langford, G. Williams, Edwards, Waters, Tacko

[Gant]

Updated Celtics rookie power rankings:

1. - Grant Williams. Of the rookies, Grant Williams has had the most opportunity. Partially that's due to need at his position, but mostly it's because he contributes reliably. In case anyone didn't notice, since he hit that first 3, he's been hitting them at a very good rate.

5. ↑ Javonte Green. Green soars up to the second spot because of one play. Not fair? There's no fairness in Celtic rookie power rankings.

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3. ↓ Tremont Waters. Waters is a victim of his own success. He's playing so well, that he's not playing. His G League accomplishments have him sitting on the bench in Boston. Tremont watching Trae Young up close the other night made you think: That's what a very small guy can do in the NBA.

4. ↑ Tacko Fall. Tacko remains exceptionally, mind-bendingly enormous. He's working hard and improving. Conditioning, strength, ability to guard outside and shift back... get better at those and he's an NBA rotation player, and a pretty scary one at that.

5. ↓ Romeo Langford. Romeo's recent floor time has revealed good defensive instincts and plenty of potential. He's been passive on offense though, preferring for now to defer to others. With Hayward and Smart back, his minutes will be uneven.

6. - Carsen Edwards. Edwards still hasn't found his 3 point shot, but other than that he's looked good for Maine. There's a very long fuse burning toward his offensive explosion. Will his D ever be enough to keep him on the floor though?

7. - Vincent Poirier. Unfortunately for Poirier, he broke his finger when he might have had a chance to play a few minutes. When Rob Williams returns, that opportunity will vanish.

[radcot]

Thanks, Gant. Hard to argue with any of these. Well, maybe a little with Green at #2, but that dunk was Jordanesque, no doubt. Gotta love all the non-boxscore things GW brings to the game.

[cloverleaf]

Updated Celtics rookie power rankings:

1. - Grant Williams. Of the rookies, Grant Williams has had the most opportunity. Partially that's due to need at his position, but mostly it's because he contributes reliably. In case anyone didn't notice, since he hit that first 3, he's been hitting them at a very good rate.

5. ↑ Javonte Green. Green soars up to the second spot because of one play. Not fair? There's no fairness in Celtic rookie power rankings.

Watch on YouTube

3. ↓ Tremont Waters. Waters is a victim of his own success. He's playing so well, that he's not playing. His G League accomplishments have him sitting on the bench in Boston. Tremont watching Trae Young up close the other night made you think: That's what a very small guy can do in the NBA.

4. ↑ Tacko Fall. Tacko remains exceptionally, mind-bendingly enormous. He's working hard and improving. Conditioning, strength, ability to guard outside and shift back... get better at those and he's an NBA rotation player, and a pretty scary one at that.

5. ↓ Romeo Langford. Romeo's recent floor time has revealed good defensive instincts and plenty of potential. He's been passive on offense though, preferring for now to defer to others. With Hayward and Smart back, his minutes will be uneven.

6. - Carsen Edwards. Edwards still hasn't found his 3 point shot, but other than that he's looked good for Maine. There's a very long fuse burning toward his offensive explosion. Will his D ever be enough to keep him on the floor though?

7. - Vincent Poirier. Unfortunately for Poirier, he broke his finger when he might have had a chance to play a few minutes. When Rob Williams returns, that opportunity will vanish.

Young is 6'2" to Waters's 5'10".

[zoyathedestroya]

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[BostonCouchGM]

Danny had a disastrous draft. This will be made glaringly obvious to most once you see the guys he passed on develop into starters and in some instances, stars, in the years to come. It’ll be as bad as when he passed on Siakam and Mitchell Robinson

[JR Hawks]

Danny had a disastrous draft. This will be made glaringly obvious to most once you see the guys he passed on develop into starters and in some instances, stars, in the years to come. It’ll be as bad as when he passed on Siakam and Mitchell Robinson

I think Stevens, who prefers character guys and positionless basketball, is a bad influence on Danny's drafting. We end up with a bunch of undersized, unathletic nice guys with low ceilings (Williams, Semi, Edwards, Smart, etc). He's trying to recreate mid-major Butler in the NBA.

[ParticleMan]

Danny had a disastrous draft. This will be made glaringly obvious to most once you see the guys he passed on develop into starters and in some instances, stars, in the years to come. It’ll be as bad as when he passed on Siakam and Mitchell Robinson

I think Stevens, who prefers character guys and positionless basketball, is a bad influence on Danny's drafting. We end up with a bunch of undersized, unathletic nice guys with low ceilings (Williams, Semi, Edwards, Smart, etc). He's trying to recreate mid-major Butler in the NBA.

i think ainge is still smarting from picks like gerald green and fab.

but yeah, he hasn't really hit on a late pick in a while. solid, sure, but nobody who turns into a quality starter the way rondo and perk did.

[Parliament10]

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[zoyathedestroya]

It isn't all about scoring, esp. when you're just an ancillary player on offense. He sets good screens. He's versatile enough that he's a multiple threat as a release valve when ballhandlers are trapped/blitzed. I think he's already our best decision-maker in that short roll area. What he lacks in size, he makes up for smarts and tenacity. He can stay in front of wings/guards well enough that weakside help can come in to block the shot or go for the steal. I still like him as a 4 better but in specific cases, he can get away as a five. He's a keeper. Gonna be a key piece for us moving forward.

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[jeremym480]

This is a good article on Grant Williams: https://www.masslive.com/celtics/2020/01/boston-celtics-rookie-grant-williams-shows-defensive-growth-offensive-decision-making-video.html

Also, his 3pt shooting is coming on. After starting 0-25, he hit 9 out of his next 23 (39%). He's going to be pretty good, yall. We just have to be a little patient and he'll get there.

[radcot]

I always feel good when he's in the game - like he isn't going to hurt us and he just might help. Can't say I feel that way about Semi. Both are hustlers and good defenders, but no comparison when it comes to BBIQ.

[CelticsPride18]

This is a good article on Grant Williams: https://www.masslive.com/celtics/2020/01/boston-celtics-rookie-grant-williams-shows-defensive-growth-offensive-decision-making-video.html

Also, his 3pt shooting is coming on. After starting 0-25, he hit 9 out of his next 23 (39%). He's going to be pretty good, yall. We just have to be a little patient and he'll get there.

I think we got 2 good pieces in Waters and Williams. Those players will be very good role players in the league.

[sam_I_am]

I really like Grant but we desperately need a guy with more length to platoon at PF.

[Red2]

I thought Carsen Edwards would be our most impactful rookie but right now you'd have to put him at the bottom of the list. I still have high hopes for him and I still think he will have a long NBA career but he needs to start knocking down some shots. Getting PT in the G league is exactly what he needs. He's used to play a lot of minutes and getting all the shots he wants. Now he only gets a few minutes and has to be productive as soon as he gets in the game. He just needs a little success to get going. there is still a lot of season left. having said all that I still wish Danny had kept his picks and drafted Tyhbule. We sure could have used his length and D.

[Fencer reregistered]

Gotta love basketball, where a guy 6 1/2 feet tall can look a bit stumpy.

It isn't all about scoring, esp. when you're just an ancillary player on offense. He sets good screens. He's versatile enough that he's a multiple threat as a release valve when ballhandlers are trapped/blitzed. I think he's already our best decision-maker in that short roll area. What he lacks in size, he makes up for smarts and tenacity. He can stay in front of wings/guards well enough that weakside help can come in to block the shot or go for the steal. I still like him as a 4 better but in specific cases, he can get away as a five. He's a keeper. Gonna be a key piece for us moving forward.

Watch on YouTube

[djFan71]

Gotta love basketball, where a guy 6 1/2 feet tall can look a bit stumpy.

It isn't all about scoring, esp. when you're just an ancillary player on offense. He sets good screens. He's versatile enough that he's a multiple threat as a release valve when ballhandlers are trapped/blitzed. I think he's already our best decision-maker in that short roll area. What he lacks in size, he makes up for smarts and tenacity. He can stay in front of wings/guards well enough that weakside help can come in to block the shot or go for the steal. I still like him as a 4 better but in specific cases, he can get away as a five. He's a keeper. Gonna be a key piece for us moving forward.

Watch on YouTube

Kanter's sideline reaction on the pass to Jaylen for the dunk was great.

[Gant]

Updated Celtics rookie power rankings:

1. ↑ Tremont Waters. Tremont looked very good in the Phoenix game, where he got 17 minutes. In that PT he was plus 17. Single game plus/minus usually means nothing, but not this time. The Celtics play better when he runs the show. Waters is the best natural floor general on the roster. Oh yeah, and he won another G league player of the week honor.

Is Tremont Waters going to have the best career of any of the rookies? Maybe not, but it actually is possible.

2. ↓ Grant Williams. Williams had a couple of lackluster games along with the rest of the bench (he started vs the Suns). He did win the funniest tech of the year award vs the Lakers though.

3. ↓ Javonte Green. Slam SLAM. If you were Javonte Green for a day, how many times would you dunk the ball?

4. - Tacko Fall. Tacko keeps on working hard. He's showing a bit more aggression with his long arms and hands on D. He's hitting a few shots aside from dunks. Who knows what he'll be when the real curtain rises next season?

5. - Romeo Langford. There's still not much to go on with Romeo, but there's not much to dislike either. Everything will improve for him as he fills out physically and gets some experience. The Romeo/Tacko/Waters trio will fun to watch next year.

6. - Carsen Edwards. Edwards has finally begun to hit the 3 for Maine. His time there has been productively spent, but his window of opportunity is narrower with the big club if everyone's healthy, as demonstrated by him being in street clothes vs the Lakers.

7. - Vincent Poirier. Speaking of vs the Lakers, the big French person looked relaxed last night and showed he can play a bit. He grabbed some boards, got a few blocks and even unveiled the three pointer.

[Red2]

I'm intrigued by what I saw from Romeo and Vincent yesterday. romeo with two tough finishes where he showed great body control and a willingness to bang and Vincent with the outside shot ,a couple of blocks and some boards. he moves his feet pretty well. yes it was garbage time in a blow out so hard to put too much stock in that but maybe Vincent can do more for us than we thought

[Parliament10]

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[Darth Celtic]

Updated Celtics rookie power rankings:

1. ↑ Tremont Waters. Tremont looked very good in the Phoenix game, where he got 17 minutes. In that PT he was plus 17. Single game plus/minus usually means nothing, but not this time. The Celtics play better when he runs the show. Waters is the best natural floor general on the roster. Oh yeah, and he won another G league player of the week honor.

Is Tremont Waters going to have the best career of any of the rookies? Maybe not, but it actually is possible.

2. ↓ Grant Williams. Williams had a couple of lackluster games along with the rest of the bench (he started vs the Suns). He did win the funniest tech of the year award vs the Lakers though.

3. ↓ Javonte Green. Slam SLAM. If you were Javonte Green for a day, how many times would you dunk the ball?

4. - Tacko Fall. Tacko keeps on working hard. He's showing a bit more aggression with his long arms and hands on D. He's hitting a few shots aside from dunks. Who knows what he'll be when the real curtain rises next season?

5. - Romeo Langford. There's still not much to go on with Romeo, but there's not much to dislike either. Everything will improve for him as he fills out physically and gets some experience. The Romeo/Tacko/Waters trio will fun to watch next year.

6. - Carsen Edwards. Edwards has finally begun to hit the 3 for Maine. His time there has been productively spent, but his window of opportunity is narrower with the big club if everyone's healthy, as demonstrated by him being in street clothes vs the Lakers.

7. - Vincent Poirier. Speaking of vs the Lakers, the big French person looked relaxed last night and showed he can play a bit. He grabbed some boards, got a few blocks and even unveiled the three pointer.

Waters defense is what sticks out.

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