Ranking All 19 Celtics Players on the 2023-24 Roster, Worst to Best
By Nick Galle
4) Jrue Holiday
Trading for Holiday made it abundantly clear that Boston was all in.
Pairing Holiday with White in the backcourt is going to cause havoc for opposing guards, and Holiday is the best possible replacement for former Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart.
The only concern with Holiday is his playoff struggles, as he shot 40 percent from the field and 28.6 percent from beyond the arc in Milwaukee's first-round series last season. A year before that, he shot 37.9 percent and 31.6 percent, respectively, across 12 postseason games. But Holiday said in his introductory press conference that he was here to make life easier for Tatum and Brown, and if he dedicates himself to that role, this team is going to be hard to stop.
3) Kristaps Porzingis
A lot of teams out there would be happy to have Porzingis as a No. 1 option. They'd be thrilled to have him as a No. 2. But as No. 3? That seems unheard of.
Porzingis averaged a career-high 23.2 points, 8.4 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in 65 games (all starts) with the Washington Wizards last season. He also shot 38.5 percent from deep and is now bound to provide the Celtics with a dual-threat big that can score from anywhere on the floor.
Injuries have hampered Porzingis in the past, so it'll be important for Boston to keep him as fresh as possible, especially heading into the spring. He might not generate the same type of offensive numbers that he did last season due to other stars on the team having to get their touches, but that could lead to plenty of wide-open looks, and if so, good luck trying to contain Porzingis.
2) Jaylen Brown
Coming in at No. 2, the highest-paid player in NBA history.
Brown signed a five-year, $304 million supermax in the offseason. There were plenty of fans who were against the move, as the freshest memory of Brown was him turning over the ball eight times in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals. But locking down Brown needed to be done.
Make all the jokes you want about his left hand, but realize that Brown averaged 26.6 points per game as the Celtics' second option last season. He also hauled in a career-high 6.9 rebounds per game, frequently stepped up in the physical or mental absence of Tatum and was selected to the All-NBA Second Team.