The Boston Celtics were without some of their stars on Monday and were still able to defeat the New Orleans Pelicans. Boston should take care of their stars and rest them as much as possible so they can be ready to make an NBA Finals run.
We already got to see what the Boston Celtics could do without Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward last season. We got a reminder on Monday night.
The Celtics were able to dominate the New Orleans Pelicans even without top stars such as Gordon Hayward, Kyrie Irving, and Al Horford.
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Now obviously you want the Celtics to win games. That is always the No.1 objective, but maybe Brad Stevens and the Celtics should think about giving these guys a break.
As much as we want to see Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward racking up insane amounts of points, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to keep them well rested.
There’s no reason to drive these guys into the ground. Celtics fans don’t want to see Hayward or Irving injured once again.
The Celtics seem to be in a groove and are finally showing the NBA what they are capable of. This is a team that looks like it will be a No.1 seed in the Eastern Conference, but that won’t matter if everyone is burnt out.
So here are 3 reasons the Boston Celtics should be proactive and rest their stars as much as possible.
1. Gives new guys time to shine
The bottom of the Boston Celtics bench is stacked with new players. By resting your stars as much as possible you give these guys a chance to show what they can do.
A prime example of this is Robert Williams. It has been tough for Williams to find playing time with all of the great talents on Boston’s roster. Williams showed why he was the Celtics 1st round draft pick on Monday night.
Williams got a bump in minutes thanks to Al Horford, and Aron Baynes missing the game with an injury. Playing 26 minutes is like an eternity for the rookie. Williams scored 7 points and also added 11 rebounds and 3 blocks.
Clearly, these new guys enjoy playing some more and it will help them progress as a player. The Celtics signed these guys so they might as well play them some decent minutes and see what they paid for.
2. Build players confidence
Early on in the season, we saw a lot of Celtics struggle. Everyone was still getting acclimated to one another and trying to find their role.
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By resting your starters you would allow players to return to what may be a more natural fit and help boost their confidence.
Jaylen Brown was a player who struggled a decent amount early on. He couldn’t find his shot and getting injured didn’t help.
Brown had arguably one of his best games on Monday night. He came off the bench and scored 19 points and had 7 rebounds and 3 assists.
Also, Terry Rozier had his issues early on in the season. He was chucking up shots left and right and making some poor decisions. It seems like he has finally got it together and has improved. He has averaged double-digit points in 3 straight games and is shooting much more efficiently.
By resting your stars you give these guys the opportunity to build their confidence and prove that they are quality players.
3. Show players value
Also by resting your stars, you give certain guys a chance to show what they can do. When you have an upcoming free agent on your roster it is always smart to put him in the best position to succeed.
Talks between Terry Rozier and the Celtics haven’t gone anywhere. It seems like it is going to a waiting game until the offseason (or maybe not).
Maybe Danny Ainge has some tricks up his sleeve. I honestly couldn’t blame Ainge for trying to get rid of Rozier. I would rather get something in return rather than just letting him walk away in free agency.
By showing what Rozier can do you increase his trade value and I am confident in trader Danny’s abilities.
So it wouldn’t be a bad idea for the Celtics to rest their stars and give other guys a chance to sign. It worked for the San Antonio Spurs all those years.
Boston’s eyes should be on a championship and not being the best team in the regular season.