Roll players
For starters, Celtics’ experiment is a good mix
Al Horford has played in 1,180 regularseason and playoff NBA games during his All-Star career, and he started all but 12 of them. In 429 games with the Celtics, he has never come off the bench. So it was quite unusual to see Horford standing up and walking to the scorer’s table midway through the first quarter of Tuesday’s preseason win over the Knicks.
Coach Joe Mazzulla is still experimenting with lineups and rotations as he tries to figure out the best way to deploy his talented top six. All-Star point guard Jrue Holiday, for example, came off the bench during the preseason opener last week. To even consider having a player of Holiday’s caliber in a backup role shows that Mazzulla’s conundrum is one that most coaches would be thrilled to untangle.
But in addition to the subtle tactical differences that result from these lineup shifts, Horford’s first turn as a reserve also might have been symbolic for this team, which is focused on breaking through and winning a championship.
When Horford checked in, he displayed the energy and effort of a rookie just trying to make the final roster, not a 37-year-old with so many miles on his tires that he would be forgiven for going through the motions in an exhibition.
At halftime, Mazzulla showed the team three standout offensive clips from the game’s first two quarters; all of them involved Horford.
“I have the utmost respect for Al,” AllStar forward Jayson Tatum said. “If Al can come off the bench at this stage of his career, nobody should have anything to say if you’re the guy that’s coming off the bench, or Joe takes you out of the game, or if you don’t finish. And everybody has to have a team-first mind-set to accomplish what we’re trying to do.”
The hierarchy was more obvious last season. The Celtics returned their starting five from a group that pushed the Warriors to the brink in the NBA Finals. Malcolm Brogdon, a longtime starter, was added in an offseason trade and instantly embraced his sixth-man role.
Then center Robert Williams missed the first 29 games following offseason knee surgery, and Derrick White slid in seamlessly, with Brogdon maintaining the slot that ultimately led to him being named Sixth Man of the Year.
After the Celtics traded Marcus Smart and acquired big man Kristaps Porzingis in a three-team deal this past summer, Mazzulla stated that White would be his starting point guard. But the surprising addition of Holiday last month seemed to blur what had been a clear picture.
Mazzulla, whose training camp has been defined by long, grueling practices, said experimenting is one of the purposes of the exhibition season. He has said several times that this team has nine capable starters.
“Our guys are open-minded,” Mazzulla said. “They’re ready to play together, they’re ready to sacrifice, and they’re ready to do whatever it takes to win. So it’s going to be a bunch of different lineups, especially during the preseason. And then we’ll be able to keep that open mind and that flexibility throughout the year.”
Some of the lineup decisions will be made for Mazzulla, of course. Horford did not play in games on back-to-back nights last season, and it’s hard to imagine that approach will change this year. The Celtics also could be cautious with Porzingis, who has battled injuries for much of his career. Rest days will be worked in for others, and there inevitably will be injuries.
Also, Mazzulla has said that even when the entire roster is available, he intends to make some lineup and rotation decisions based on nightly matchups.
When Porzingis, who certainly will be a starter and closer most often, was asked whether it’s important for the players to feel consistency with these lineups, he mostly shrugged.
“Honestly, I don’t think these guys care, but all we care about is winning and playing the right way,” he said. “We’re just going to trust Joe with those kind of things and the rotations, and there’s going to be some nights somebody’s going to rest and the starting five is going to look different. So we’re prepared for it all and it doesn’t really make a huge difference for us.”
The Celtics could be slightly vulnerable on the glass when they play with Porzingis at center, and it would put more of a defensive burden on Tatum and Jaylen Brown. The shorthanded Knicks gobbled up 14 offensive rebounds Tuesday.
But Porzingis said that having All-Defense guards Holiday and White at the point of attack is a weapon, too. And unlike when Robert Williams patrolled the paint, any combination involving the top six players will feature five capable of drilling 3pointers, bringing scoring as well as elite floor spacing.
In the end, of course, just five of the top six can be on the floor at a time. This could lead to inconsistencies or even frustrations. But for now, the Celtics are preparing for anything.
“On any given night, somebody might come off the bench, somebody might not finish, and it’s on all of us to understand that whoever’s night it is, it’s for the better of the team,” Tatum said. “And we really have to buy into that. And it’s not easy sacrificing, but it’s something we all have to do.”