Boston Celtics open scrimmage notes: Jaylen Brown throws down big dunk, Marcus Smart impressive from downtown

-- Jaylen Brown's debut offered everything we should have expected: a couple of monster dunks, a handful of fun moments, and a load of inexperienced mistakes. When he found space in transition, he was brilliant:

In more crowded areas, he didn't always know exactly what to do. His first drive ended with the ball sliding out of his hands, and he forced the action too often off the bounce. Once, Jae Crowder swatted Brown from behind. Another time, Brown spun past his defender in the paint -- a beautiful move -- but didn't loft his floater far enough. During his best half-court move, the rookie froze a big man with an in-and-out dribble and knocked down a short jump shot. He ended up scoring a fair amount of points, but didn't really make a positive impact until most of the rotation guys were sitting on the bench.

Brown's performance was symbolized by one defensive possession, when he jumped at Jae Crowder's up fake not once, not twice but three times in a row. The lesson: stay on your feet, young man. Still, leaping quickly enough to overcome his own overzealousness, Brown contested the shot well enough to force an airball. He will screw up, learn, fly around, and occasionally do awesome basketball things. Shout out to the time he grabbed a rebound, pushed the ball in transition and led Tyler Zeller straight to the hoop with a beautiful bounce pass.



-- Horford didn't score 1 million points or anything, but he's Al Horford so I suspect he'll be OK.

-- Just in case you were wondering, Isaiah Thomas remains capable of outrageous finishes near the hoop. The first highlight here shows the All-Star bursting past Tyler Zeller, splitting Zeller and Jonas Jerebko, and scissor-kicking his way to a right-handed (!) and-1 reverse:

-- Terry Rozier and Marcus Smart both starred in the first 10-minute scrimmage, which pitted the starters vs. the second unit, plus subs for both teams. It's starting to feel like Rozier is earning more and more playing time by the day. He really looked comfortable, as you can read about here.

After one of the guard's 3-pointers, Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge said on CSNNE: "I think that guy that just hit a three right there is going to eat a lot of (Evan Turner's) minutes up. ... Evan was a terrific player for us but Terry's really biting at the bit for this opportunity. He's had a fantastic summer league and training camp. You can ask Avery (Bradley) and IT what they think of Rozier because he's given them a handful in camp."

-- There's been a lot of talk about Smart changing his shooting form this summer. It's way too early to tell how much progress he made, but he hit three triples (by my unofficial count) Friday night and also nailed a pull-up jumper. A couple of his misses were harsh, but it was a good night for optimists hoping he has fixed some of the issues with his outside stroke.

-- Smart also had one bully move in the post to draw contact from the defending Avery Bradley. It would be neat if Smart has figured out more ways to use his strength.

-- The green team featured Thomas, Bradley, Jae Crowder, Amir Johnson and Horford, which seems like the best bet for an opening-night starting lineup. That could be one heck of a defensive group -- with Smart off the bench to further the bash brother vibes.

-- Other observations: R.J. Hunter did not have a great night, James Young had a few decent moments, and two players (Gerald Green and Kelly Olynyk) sat expectedly due to injuries. The Celtics are back. Sort of. Preseason begins Tuesday night.
http://www.masslive.com/celtics/index.ssf/2016/09/boston_celtics_open_scrimmage_1.html

BLAKELY'S FIVE THROUGHTS FROM THE GREEN AND WHITE SCRIMMAGE
By A. Sherrod Blakely

As has been customary with the Celtics in recent years, their open practice on Friday night featured a pair of 10-minute scrimmages pitting the “Green” team of starters against the “White” team of reserves.

The White team, which apparently has been kicking the Green team’s butt for a good chunk of camp, emerged with a 33-26 win. And the Green team had to rally to win the second scrimmage, 24-18.

Similar to summer league, you can’t read too much into what happened and what didn’t happen on Friday night.

That said, there were a number of clear and undeniable positives for the Celtics to take from the game and hopefully build upon them going forward.


5. Al Horford's leadership established

The first player’s voice that the 6,000-plus fans at the TD Garden heard from was Al Horford and don’t think for a minute that was just happenstance.

For all the scoring and rebounding and defending that the Celtics will look for Horford to do, it is his ability to lead this team that separates him from most of his NBA brethren.

The fact that he’s a four-time All-Star speaks to what he has done in this league as a player. But even more telling is that was the fact that he’s been to the playoffs every year he has been in the NBA. And during that span of nine years, he has been pivotal in leading Atlanta beyond the first round – a primary goal for him and the Celtics this season – five times.


4. Celtics defense could be an elite unit this season

The Celtics were a top-10 defensive team last season, and have every reason to believe that they’ll be even better now. Boston has a trio of Pit Bull-like defenders on the perimeter in Marcus Smart, Terry Rozier and All-NBA first team defender Avery Bradley. Throw in Jae Crowder’s defensive versatility at the wing along with a pair of upper echelon rim-protectors in Amir Johnson and Al Horford and the Celtics no longer are a team that can put a couple good defenders on the floor at one time. They actually have the depth now to go with a ‘Big’ all-defensive team or a ‘small ball’ all-defensive team which provides the kind of versatility that should result in Boston being a top-3 defensive team this season.


3. Marcus Smart poised for breakout season

Smart seemed about as comfortable as we’ve seen him on Friday, showcasing his range as a shooter while still being able to get after it defensively. Based on what he has done in terms of improving his game, Smart seems more likely to play off the ball than on it. With his size, strength, athleticism and ability to defend multiple positions that’s not necessarily a bad thing. If Boston does indeed have one of those magical-type seasons, Smart is a player that has the potential to help significantly. He understands the Celtics’ system inside and out, and is doing what young players on the rise should do – show growth as a player.


2. James Young playing best basketball at right time

These are some pretty stressful times for James Young, but you wouldn’t know it by the extremely cool demeanor he has exuded. Although it has only been a few short days of training camp, James Young has stepped up his game knowing anything less than his best could result in him being waived and potentially on his way out of the NBA. During the first Green-White scrimmage on Friday night, Danny Ainge said there were five guys essentially fighting for two roster spots. He didn’t single out Young specifically, but it’s no secret that the 21-year-old who is heading into third NBA season is among the players in that group. To Young's credit, he's doing a lot of those little things such as playing solid defense, getting deflections and making "hockey assists" to show he belongs in the NBA and more significantly, should remain a Celtic.

1. Terry Rozier's tremendous strides

Rozier was the star of the two scrimmages the Celtics put on in front of about 6,000 people at the TD Garden Friday night. He scored, got assists, rebounded … he did it all. What impressed me the most about him was his defense on Isaiah Thomas. Rozier loves Thomas and respects the hell out of him. But Rozier has made no secret about wanting to get more playing time this year, and is out to snatch some of the minutes from anyone ahead of him, Thomas included. We saw the tenacious potential Rozier has as an on-the-ball defender, but he seems to have taken that up a notch from his rookie season. And the confidence he has in his shot-making is undeniable. We saw that in summer league and it’s good to see that he brought it with him into training camp. Ditto for his decision-making and leading of the team at the point which are also areas in which he has improved but still needs to continue to get better at on a more consistent basis. There’s no doubt at this point Rozier will play this season and likely get a lion’s share of the minutes vacated by Evan Turner’s departure to Portland.

http://www.csnne.com/boston-celtics/blakelys-five-throughts-green-and-white-scrimmage?utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=twitterfeed

Terry Rozier, Marcus Smart and Jaylen Brown shine at 2016 Boston Celtics Open Practice

The Celtics’ stud rookie Jaylen Brown threw down some huge slams in his first action in front of the fans for the Boston Celtics. But it was Terry Rozier and Marcus Smart’s partnership that stole the show at the 2016 Celtics open practice.
by Jared Weiss

In a battle of green vs. white Friday night, the Celtics managed to pull out the win. The 2016 Celtics’ open scrimmage was full of highlights, exciting lineup combinations, and of course the first look at prized rookie Jaylen Brown.

Brown looked every bit the dynamic slasher he was in the Vegas summer league and was functioning well at NBA game speed. He unleashed a flurry of slick drives and thunderous dunks that brought the 6,118 fans in attendance to their feet.

It was more of the same for Isaiah Thomas, whose dazzling finishes in the paint have become almost routine at this point. He looked good out there with Al Horford as they played most of the first half together.

The most interesting lineup question was the Marcus Smart-Terry Rozier second unit back court. Danny Ainge said during the game that the second unit had beaten the first unit three straight days in training camp. Watching Rozier and Smart out there together made it easy to see why. Rozier looks just like the player we saw in Vegas, which is a vast departure from the energetic but lost rookie from the spring.

Rozier and Smart switched off play-initiation duties pretty frequently throughout the first half, with the other frequently running off-ball actions with the bigs to get the ball curling across the top of the key. Smart’s shot has been completely restructured this offseason, showing promise that he can be an effective off-ball guard in the second and closing units. Smart went 3-for-5 from deep, showing good form and rhythm on his shot.

One of the most interesting battles was between R.J. Hunter and James Young, who were not put on opposite teams by accident. It’s likely that they, along with Ben Bentil, will be fighting for the final spot on the roster. Although Hunter has a billion-dollar shooting form, everything else continues to be a little too fast for him. Young’s constant movement and impressive athleticism keeps him in the play at all times. But there wasn’t much action from either player to really make a difference in their race to the finish.

http://www.celticsblog.com/2016/9/30/13128080/terry-rozier-marcus-smart--jaylen-brown-2016-boston-celtics-open-practice

It's going to take continued patience on the part of us Celtics fans, but we're building a good young core starting with the back-court.  IT is instant offense and an underrated passer, Bradley a lockdown defender, and Smart and Rozier could become the backcourt combo for a very long time.  Jackson could turn out to be a real sleeper from the last draft; keep an eye on him.  As our new hope on the wing, Brown will take some time, just like Smart has.  But he will be a similar player to Smart,  and that can only be good.  

These early camp days are going to have as many down days as up, and the season won't be any different.  If you like gritty defense, and young developing players displaying hustle and athleticism, however, this is going to be an enjoyable season.

Being very early in the preseason, it's hard to judge too much yet.  Hopefully we're seeing glimmers of what will emerge as consistent patterns.

In the meantime, fall is a sports fan's high season.  Besides hoops getting underway, football is in full tilt, hockey is getting going, and the baseball playoffs are upon us.  Anyone who saw that Clemson win over Louisville in last night's football game can testify that this is a great time of year.

Ah...gyso, Rosalie...

First time the Pats ever get shut out at Gillette?  By Rex and the boys?  With their top two receivers and a bunch of others injured (to keep it even with the Brady and Gronk situations)?

OK, OK.  That's as far as I'll take it.  I'll go back to the reality that we're not talking title out here in Western NY. We all know Belichick will come up with another division title at a minimum. They'll probably have a huge chip on their shoulders when Brady gets back and run the table.

It sure did feel good today though! Loved it when Belichick threw his tablet.

Regards

Rosalie,

We Bills fans look for just about any reason to celebrate!

Regards

NYCelt wrote:Ah...gyso, Rosalie...

First time the Pats ever get shut out at Gillette?  By Rex and the boys?  With their top two receivers and a bunch of others injured (to keep it even with the Brady and Gronk situations)?

OK, OK.  That's as far as I'll take it.  I'll go back to the reality that we're not talking title out here in Western NY. We all know Belichick will come up with another division title at a minimum. They'll probably have a huge chip on their shoulders when Brady gets back and run the table.

It sure did feel good today though! Loved it when Belichick threw his tablet.

Regards

I USED to like you NYC!

bobc33 wrote:

NYCelt wrote:Ah...gyso, Rosalie...

First time the Pats ever get shut out at Gillette?  By Rex and the boys?  With their top two receivers and a bunch of others injured (to keep it even with the Brady and Gronk situations)?

OK, OK.  That's as far as I'll take it.  I'll go back to the reality that we're not talking title out here in Western NY.  We all know Belichick will come up with another division title at a minimum.  They'll probably have a huge chip on their shoulders when Brady gets back and run the table.

It sure did feel good today though!  Loved it when Belichick threw his tablet.

Regards

I USED to like you NYC!    

Bob,

You'll probably like me again by about 4:00pm on October 30!
My guess is, barring the unexpected (that's why they play the games), most Patriots fans will be happy around that time.

Regards