Xavier Tillman traded to Celtics

moves going on: Buddy Heild to Philly/Marcus Morris traded, Gordon Hayward to OKC/

moves going on:  Buddy Heild to Philly/Marcus Morris traded, Gordon Hayward to OKC/

This guy is an above average defender, bordering on elite. His offense should improve playing with top offensive players.

This could be a very good acquisition. We might need a guy like this to guard Giannis, Embiid and hopefully either Jokic or Leonard for some stretches.

RosalieTCeltics wrote:moves going on:  Buddy Heild to Philly/Marcus Morris traded, Gordon Hayward to OKC/

I hope Gordon has great health the rest of his career. A healthy Hayward can really help OKC, who doesn’t really need all that much.

Now that Tillman is on the team will he sit on the bench in moth balls or actually get a chance to be fully integrated into our rotation?

The stats for him include a MPG baseline and it seems unlikely that he will log anything close to 20 MPG.  So the first thing I would do is to throw out the 6 PPG and 4.6 RPG stats along with all of his other stats.

I see very limited opportunity for him to play.  Our current limitation on playing AH and KP in B2B games could open the door for him to play.  When both of them are healthy, you would expect Kornet to get most of the BU minutes.

However, CJ appears to employ the 2-big lineups and there seems to be a trend where he is doing that more.  I have no specific evidence to support that observation.  

He does not enhance our offensive output but he may be able to give us a defensive edge and another defensive option to employ.

The odd man out as a result of this trade is probably Queta.  

Now I just need to see what Tillman can do.  Can he defend on the perimeter?  Is he switchable?  Can he get up and down in transition?  He has a positive defensive rating so my expectations are that he can do multiple things on the defensive side of the ball.

With respect to his lack of offensive punch,  if his rotation minutes are accompanied and paired with shooters and scorers, his lack of offensive skills may be masked.

I've had a day to let this trade marinate a bit.  I'm starting to come around.

1.  Based upon what I've been reading Tillman is a very good, possibly even elite, defender.  Elite defenders are always welcome on any team of mine.

2.  He can bang, and I love bangers.  Neither Luke nor Al nor really even Z are, so it's nice to have one on the squad.  Queta's a banger, but some of his pnr rotations have been weak.  Tillman's aren't.  Bangers aren't in as much demand as they used to be, but you really should have at least one.

3.  He's played 3366 NBA minutes in 3 1/2 NBA seasons.  That's solid rotation player minutes.  For a 2nd round pick (#35 in the 2020 draft) that's pretty impressive.  Second round picks don't usually even make the team, much less get regular minutes.  He even started 12 games in his rookie year, even more impressive for a 2nd rounder.

4.  He's played in 207 games in those 3 1/2 years.  That averages out to 59 games per season.  That's not bad for a role player.

5.  He has started in 56 of those 207 games.  The Grizzlies have been horribly depleted this season, but last year he played in 61 games and started in 29 of them.  That's almost half of the games he played in and last year Memphis' record was 51-31, finishing 2nd in the Western Conference.  Second, behind the 53-29 World Champion Denver Nuggets.  He started a lot of games on a good team.

6.  I liked Lamar, I liked the physical toughness he brought to us.  I don't understand why Joe never gave him more minutes, but he didn't, and a player who doesn't play might as well not be on the roster or in a developmental program like Jordan Walsh is.  Tillman is a tough guy, like Lamar, who almost certainly will get some minutes, maybe move in front of Luke on the depth chart after he learns Joe's defensive schemes and/or take some of Al's minutes. Al is averaging 27mpg, and that's a lot for a player who will be 38 in June.  That makes Tillman an upgrade over the invisible Lamar Stevens.


That Brad Stevens fella is pretty good at this stuff.


Bob


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Xavier Tillman is one of only 14 players in the NBA to average a steal and a block, and he is the only one doing that in < 25mpg. He might not know what to do with the rock on offense but he's efficient on defense.

I also realized that with Lamar gone Luke has the undisputed ownership of "L".


Bob


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Brad played his cards in the summer, who can argue with KP and Jrue, especially considering the cost.  So I was expecting marginal moves here.

Having seen Tillman against the Warriors, I am happy that he is here. I expect that he may win out against Kornet.  On the second unit with 1/2 of Hauser and PP on the floor, he may be more effective than Kornet. Just wish that he shot FTs a little better.

Brad played his cards in the summer, who can argue with KP and Jrue, especially considering the cost. So I was expecting marginal moves here.

Having seen Tillman against the Warriors, I am happy that he is here. I expect that we may win out against Kornet. On the second unit with 1/2 of Hauser and PP on the floor, he may be more effective than Kornet. Just wish that he shot FTs a little better.

Bob


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Thanks Bob, that was a nice interview.

Defense, passing, setting picks, rebounding, sounds like it fits right in.

Gary Washburn: Jaden Springer will wear #44; Xavier Tillman will wear #26. #Celtics 1 hour ago – via Twitter GwashburnGlobe

My jaw dropped when I saw Tillman backing down Anthony Davis.  It looked like almost all his points were on AD.  I think I'm in love.

The whole video is only 2:39






Bob


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Well I’d say Tillman certainly looks like a rotation player, not a 12th man on the roster.

In Brad we trust!

bobc33 wrote:Well I’d say Tillman certainly looks like a rotation player, not a 12th man on the roster.

In Brad we trust!

Bob,

Starters
Jaylen
Jayson
Jrue
Derrick
Z

Bench
Al
Sam
Payton

There's 8. After that we have Luke and Oshae to get to 10, and if Tillman moves ahead of Luke on the depth chart then he's 9th or 10th at worst, and that's pretty much a solid rotation player.


Bob

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Think 2008 Title.  Think Leon Powe and Tony Allen

Tillman and Springer resemble them in terms of size, skill level and position.

NBA trade deadline grades roundup: How experts view Celtics' moves

https://www.yahoo.com/sports/nba-trade-deadline-grades-roundup-173601670.html




My comment: Click on the link to access the article text.

Tillman does follow Celtic tradition.

He has a history of injury, has been out for a week prior to the trade and will be out for a few games now that he’s a Celtic.

Celtics17 wrote:This guy is an above average defender, bordering on elite. His offense should improve playing with top offensive players.

This could be a very good acquisition. We might need a guy like this to guard Giannis, Embiid and hopefully either Jokic or Leonard for some stretches.

seconded

dboss wrote:Think 2008 Title.  Think Leon Powe and Tony Allen

Tillman and Springer resemble them in terms of size, skill level and position.

good comps

https://us.yahoo.com/sports/joe-mazzulla-explains-why-xavier-202827306.html



Joe Mazzulla explains why Xavier Tillman compliments Boston’s ‘Stay Ready Crew’


Cameron Tabatabaie

Sun, March 3, 2024 at 3:28 PM GMT-5·2 min read



According to Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla, a big aspect of his team’s success this season is an ability to adapt to challenges as they arise. This is especially true of the Celtics bench, which has been dubbed the “Stay Ready Crew” for their flexibility.

As Mazzulla explained Sunday afternoon, that ethos of remaining locked and loaded extends to newcomer Xavier Tillman. Boston acquired Tillman at the 2024 NBA trade deadline, and he has yet to find a steady diet of minutes with his new club. Friday night against the Dallas Mavericks, however, Tillman logged 15 minutes, his biggest showing in Celtics green. Mazzulla said he knows Tillman can make an impact for Boston if called upon.

“He’s already there.” Mazzulla said. “I wouldn’t have trusted putting him in the game.”


Mazzulla called Tillman’s number, seemingly out of the blue. As the coach explained, this underscores Boston’s flexible roster more than Tillman’s own unique level of preparedness.

“The story isn’t about Xavier,” Mazzulla said. “It’s about our role guys and our bench guys, and the job that they’re doing, the professionalism that they’re showing, staying ready.”

“He didn’t know he was going in,” Mazzulla continued. “Neither did I until I saw Dallas’ lineup to start the quarter. And it’s a credit to our bench where they have the open mindedness and the professionalism to always be ready and understand that the best lineup gives us the best chance to win.”


“So as much as it’s about Xavier,” Mazzulla said. “It’s about the entire bench being able to do that at any time.”

Boston leads the league in bench +/- at the time of this writing. And the Celtics have had great success integrating new lineups throughout the regular season.

“The great thing about our team is we complement each other really well,” Mazzulla stated. “And there are a lot of different avenues we can go down in the midst of a game.”


Bob
MY NOTE:  X is doing well in the time he's been here and has played and he's only going to get better.  Remember Derrick White when he came here at the trade deadline?  He was ok, but not great.  Then he got a training camp under his belt, more minutes and now he's one of the top two way guards in the league. Tillman will get better, maybe a lot better. It might not be in time for the playoffs this year, but we own his Bird Rights.

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Tillman (and Springer) must keep pinching themselves to see if this isn't just a dream. To get traded here, that alone should make them quite happy. Add to that one of the reasons Brad targeted them was due to future roster needs and their ability to continue as Celtics via Bird rights, they must be sporting permanent grins.

Their future's so bright, they gotta wear shades!!!