Boston Celtics: Five Most Important Players This Season
By Dan Orencole
Apr 3, 2015; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Celtics guard Avery Bradley (0) drives the ball against Milwaukee Bucks guard O.J. Mayo (00) in the second half at TD Garden. The Bucks defeated the Celtics 110 to 101. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports
Enough with all of this trade talk for Avery Bradley. Trading Bradley would be a big mistake. Bradley has shown improvement each year throughout his young career. Many forget that this guy is only 24-years-old.
As one of the better on ball defenders in the league, Bradley held his opponents to 42.1 percent shooting against him during the playoff series against the Cleveland Cavaliers. In this series, the Cavaliers shot under 44% as a team just one game out of four, proving Bradley’s worth on the defensive end of the court.
While defense is what he has been known for, Bradley can be a force on the offensive end as well. He has shot 43% from the field in his career and has been a reliable player for this Celtics team throughout. He also showed he could be a primary scorer for this team following the trade of Rajon Rondo last year.
Last season, Bradley average 11 points per game in six December games after the Rondo trade on December 18th. In January he improved to 14.2 points per game. Then, in February he averaged 18.3 points per game.
Look for Bradley’s improvement on the offensive end to continue this season. I see him averaging around 15-16 points per game this year. If he does that, this Boston team will be very scary for opponents.
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