The summer league may seem trivial to some, but they are plenty of reasons that Boston Celtics fans should tune into some games.
Basketball is back folks. Well not officially, but the NBA summer league is underway, and the Boston Celtics played their first game on Friday. Even though free agency is the main cause of fireworks in July, things will be interesting for the Celtics. The summer league is the first chance to look at draft picks, and see if young bench players are ready to take the next step.
Some of these players may never end up in the NBA, but some will begin their path to greatness. If you are a Celtics fan looking to scratch that basketball itch the summer league will be your best friend.
So here are the 3 reasons that you should be watching the Celtics summer league squad.
What will the rookie do?
All eyes will be focused on Robert Williams. Williams continues to make mistakes off the court but seems to be very talented once he is on the floor.
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Williams managed to miss his introductory conference call and his first summer league practice. With there being questions about his motivation this isn’t exactly what you want to see.
Once Williams managed to make it on the court he impressed Celtics coaches. Williams is an athletic freak whose height and wingspan make him a quality defender in the paint. With some coaching, Williams could become a solid NBA player.
It will be interesting to see how Williams performs in the summer league. He will be one of the best players on the team and will be looked on to perform well.
With a good performance, Williams can get everyone focused on his talent and not his off the court antics that caused him to drop to the Celtics.
Semi’s second season
Semi Ojeleye didn’t get a ton of playing time in his rookie year but showed some valuable talent coming off the bench.
Ojeleye only averaged 2.7 points a game, but he made an impact on the defensive side of the ball.
It seems like there is no one on the floor that Ojeleye can’t guard. He is 6’7″ and weighs 236 pounds. He looks like “The Rock” out on the court. Ojeleye’s size allows him to defend basically every position on the court.
In the summer league, you hope Ojeleye can improve on offense. He will get plenty of minutes this summer, and be one of the veterans on the team.
I hope to see Ojeleye improve so he can get more minutes in the regular season. His athleticism is off the charts and he is a quality defensive target. If he becomes serviceable on offense and can develop a solid jump shot, Ojeleye will be dangerous of the bench.
The dancing bear
This summer league will be important for Guerschon Yabusele. If he wants to have any chance of making the NBA roster he needs to show out this summer.
Yabusule was at the end of the Boston Celtics bench and only averaged 7 minutes and 2.4 points per game.
The Boston Celtics drafted Yabusele 16th overall, and he hasn’t performed like a top 20 pick. Danny Ainge has already hinted that Yabu may spend the year in Maine. The Celtics have a stacked roster, so Yabusele will need to show that he is worth taking up an NBA roster spot.
Basketball fans can rejoice since they finally have something to watch. It will be interesting to see how these three players do. They will have to earn their playing time because the Celtics have a loaded roster.
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So Boston Celtics fans sit down, grab a drink and watch some future NBA stars show what they got.