The 2017-18 Celtics have been doubted all year long.
After Gordon Hayward went down w/ a season-ending injury in Game #1 (of 82), no one really knew what to expect the rest of the way. But after dropping their first couple games, the C's reeled off a double digit win streak and never looked back - finished w/ 55 wins, the two seed & a(nother) strong "Coach of the Year" campaign outta Brad Stevens.
But right as everything was back on track, K. Irving was ruled out for the remainder of the season - just a week before the playoffs.
Once again, things looked uncertain. Sure, Boston would enter as a 2 seed but (now) without Irving & G. Hayward, what's the ceiling?
As of April 29th (2018), we still don't know. The C's are still standing, coming off an impressive Game 7 victory v. Milwaukee. Al Horford was incredible (avg. 18, 9 & 3 dimes) the entire series, Marcus Morris played his role well on both ends & Marcus Smart returned w/ great intensity & intangibles.
But much of their success is (rightfully) attributed to the readiness & consistent production of their young core: Jayson Tatum (20), Jaylen Brown (21) & Terry Rozier (24).
1st Round: 15.4 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 3.1 apg
1st Round: 17.6 rpg, 6.7 apg, 4.3 rpg
1st Round: 17.9 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 47% FG
Prior to the season, J. Tatum's role was somewhat uncertain. You knew his scoring ability & tremendous iso skill would yield meaningful minutes but w/ Jaylen Brown and veterans Gordon Hayward & Marcus Morris in the fold, a starting spot wasn't guaranteed.
In fact, it wasn't til G. Hayward's injury that Tatum joined Brad Stevens's 5 - smart move: he was one of the league's top first-years (avg. 13.9 ppg, over 30 min./night), unexpectedly shot lights out from deep (43%) & displayed a level of confidence & consistency not seen in many rooks.
Tatum was better than anticipated, much like fellow wing Jaylen Brown.
Brown, in year 2, was expected to show signs of improvement across the board - but more so natural progression in terms of consistency & readiness as a shooter & defender, not necessarily a drastic jump in production.
Instead, the Hayward injury forced him into a major role. Already a Day 1 starter, Brown was tasked w/ adding a nightly offensive punch to offset losing a star - he passed with flying colors: avg. 14.5! ppg & upped his three-point accuracy to nearly 40% (shot 35% as a rook).
Brown's backcourt mate, Scary Terry Rozier was another key factor in Boston's 55-win season. As a third guard, Rozier's nightly role was that of backup PG & SG - available anywhere from 26-35+ min./night. His improvements as a breakdown isolation scorer, finisher & shooter (38% from beyond the arc) gave Brad Stevens another multi-dimensional threat in the lineup.
So when K. Irving was ruled out for the season right before the playoffs, Tatum, Brown & Rozier had to step up yet again.
And like the regular season: the trio went above & beyond. All of them avg. between 15-18 points, took their turn leading Boston in scoring & accepted the challenge of winning individual matchups (ex. T. Rozier > E. Bledsoe).
Progression & confidence comes primarily through game experience & positive results - winning a playoff series w/o (arguably) two All-Stars is an indicator of good things to come.
With a cap no longer on the season, let's see how far the young C's go.