With Rajon Rondo out to a wrist injury over the past three games, Avery Bradley has earned the nod as the starting point guard for the Boston Celtics over the last week. Prior to earning the temporary starting role, most fans either:
A. Had no clue who Avery Bradley was,
B. Had no clue what his strengths or weaknesses were.
C. Knew A and B, but felt that he wouldn’t be able to live up to his potential.
Bradley was selected with the Celtics 19th pick last season in the first round after spending one season with the Texas Longhorns. While in Texas, Bradley played well averaging just over 11 PPG while shooting 43% from the field and 37% from deep in 29.5 MPG. What stands out most about Bradley was how highly ranked he was coming out of High School just prior to signing with the Longhorns. ESPN ranked Bradley at one point as the #1 prospect of his class and analyzed Bradley as such:
In our eyes, explosive athlete Avery Bradley has emerged as the No. 1 player in the land. He was named the MVP of the National High School Invitational in Washington, D.C. He guided Findlay to victories over Mountain State Academy, No. 8 Montrose Christian and No. 1 Oak Hill Academy. In each of those games, it was evident that Bradley was the difference.
Bradley is the most complete player in the class and is a difference-maker both offensively and defensively, which is rare. This young man has steadily risen up the rankings since last season. Initially it was his defensive play that propelled him. Bradley plays with great intensity each and every possession, and from a defensive standpoint he is an absolute lockup on-the-ball defender, the best in his class. He uses his length with superior quickness and intelligence to force the offensive player into bad situations. He is committed to keeping his man out of the lane, chasing him off screens and contesting jump shots.
While Bradley built his reputation as a defender, the strides he made on offense are what enabled him to ascend to the top of our rankings. He excels in the open floor, often grabbing a rebound, running with it and finishing with a dunk. In the half court, he works hard to get open and takes what is given without hunting down shots. His midrange game is outstanding, both off the dribble and off the catch. Of late, he has hit the 3-point shot with regularity, which would make him hard to guard with an already strong dribble drive and pull-up jumper. This young man scores, defends and makes everyone around him better. He leads his team to wins and, more importantly, championships.
Clearly as one can see, Bradley’s ability defensively stands out immensely. Bradley does possess a bit of an offensive game, but it is his intelligence defensively that makes Bradley so interesting. Celtics fans rarely got the chance to see this aspect of Bradley’s game last season given his lack of playing time on a veteran laced roster. That is not the case this year.
With Delonte West in Dallas and Von Wafer in Orlando; Bradley has seen more playing time this season, playing both the 1 and 2 positions on the floor. The rumor with Bradley was that the Celtics were attempting to turn Bradley into a 2 guard in hope that he would improve his shot to make him a more serious deep threat, or give the Celtics the opportunity to play small ball with two superior defensive guards on the floor at the same time. Through it though, Bradley seemed a bit uncomfortable away from his natural position at the point.
With Rajon Rondo out with an injured wrist, Bradley has earned the opportunity to start at Point Guard for the Celtics. While his statistics won’t blow you away (10 pts, 3 pts, 6 pts, and a high in assists coming Sunday with 7), the statistics don’t tell the entire story for what Bradley gave the Celtics in three starts thus far. While facing three solid NBA point guards (Steve Nash, John Wall, and Jameer Nelson), Bradley’s defense once again stood out as it has throughout his basketball career.
Bradley’s defense has been compared to a bloodhound, honey badger, and a shark. He was aggressive, fearless, and tough which is everything the Boston Celtics ask of their players especially on the defensive end of the floor. While his offense wasn’t blowing anyone away, he wasn’t exactly asked to carry the team offensively. With Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett on the floor why would he?
With his recent play, Bradley has started to prove that he may have a case to be made that he could become a legitimate starting Point Guard in the NBA.
There have been countless point guards in the league that have earned starting roles for a number of years based on their defense alone. On a team that is based on the “defense first” mentality, Bradley would be an ideal candidate for that position.
If not for one minor problem: Rajon Rondo.
Rondo is a far better point guard than Avery Bradley. He possesses a much deeper arsenal offensively than Bradley, he is a superior passer, and he is a very strong defender, though Bradley is a better on the ball defender.
With all things considered, wouldn’t it be in the best interest of the Celtics to consider their depth at the Point Guard position and use that to their advantage?
If the Celtics are going to continue to remain relevant in the NBA, they will need to find a way to get better and younger. While most fans would like to trade Kevin Garnett for Dwight Howard, it is a bit unrealistic to say the least. The Celtics will need to part with a young talent in order to acquire a young talent, and the only place the Celtics have a depth of young talent is at Point Guard.
While the Celtics can trade Avery Bradley, what will teams be willing to give up for Bradley? Would it even be worth it considering Bradley’s potential? Would it be enough to make the Celtics better for a long period of time? Highly doubtful to all of the above questions.
If the Celtics were to move Rajon Rondo though, the list of potential compensation is limitless. Rondo has established himself as a premier player over the past three seasons and only furthered his case this season with his play.
Teams would salivate to have Rondo on their squad.
The Celtics would be able to move Rondo and build depth with a young talent at another position, while keeping a capable starter in their lineup at the 1. This may be the only course of action the Celtics can take to rebuild on the fly. At this point, they have no other tradeable young talent that teams would be interested in giving up much for other than Rondo.
Would Celtics fans be interested in trading Rondo if it meant acquiring Dwight Howard, Tyreke Evans, or other players of that caliper while keeping Bradley as a starter? Or would they rather trade Bradley and get a player such as Jason Richardson or Marvin Williams?
Discuss and debate Celtics fans!
Special Guest Host Ryan Hadfield from WEEI Joins The Block Party Tonight @ 8 PM ET 
Celtics Take Care of Business by Beating the Sixers in Game 3, 107-91 
Boston Celtics Post Game Show: game 3 vs Sixers – NOW on-demand 
2012 NBA Playoffs! It’s time to join the conversation & win! 
Loading ...
I’m definitely impressed by his analysis especially considering it was before college. This week has definitely shown his potential. I see what you mean being able to get more back from a Rondo but I’d like to see him develop as a 2 with Rondo at the point and the two of them can lock down any backcourt in the league. Realistically I don’t think there is any chance D12 is coming here so you are going to have to come at me with something better than Tyreke Evans for me to agree with dealing Rondo. Short of CP3 or DRose, I just don’t think there is anyone I’d trade him for right now or in the near future. Great stuff as always though Nick. I know we all break chops but I respect your opinion.
Couldn’t agree more w. you Sean.
You may be short changing Evans a bit, he is a stud , I think the problem with developing him as a 2 is he is never going to be a strong shooter, I think the Celtics are better served with a camp out deep guy at the two with how their offense runs thus why Ray Allen has so much success here. Bradley and Rondo are good driving the lane, and what helps with players who drive is the defense collapses and the guard can kick it out to a man deep whether its the 2 or a big man who can shoot outside (bass, KG, Big Baby when he was here)
Just an aside… Gorman HATES Evans.
Yeah I see what you mean. I just think a PG like Rondo is so hard to replace and even bringing a stud like Evans…we’re gonna be hearing the same stuff about AB that we hear about Rondo about him having no shot. Hence why I think they are developing him into a 2 and allowing him to work on his shot. 2′s can still penetrate and score or kick to shooters. (I.e. DWade, although he can shoot too)
I don’t think a one-for-one trade would be the answer, but I do believe trading Rondo may be the answer. Although I love watching him play, we all have to admit how inconsistent it is at times.
I’d entertain offers like Rondo/Garnett for Lowry/Scola. Or Rondo for Mike Conley/OJ Mayo. Or Rondo for Lawson/Gallinari. It’s going to be tough to find a player that matches up one-on-one in a trade for Rondo. But a multi-player deal may work.
hmmmmmm a bit of flip-flopping from BPaul???? That’ll def be on CLNShow’s next list of topics! LOL
I agree tho Brandon.
Those three trade proposals defeat the purpose of what I envisioned Bradley becoming (all three have the Celtics acquiring a starting PG) I could see the Celtics going after a guy like Rudy Gay, I could see it being a three team trade with Rondo going to Memphis, Gay to Boston, Conley to a third team and the third team sending a player and/or picks to Boston and Memphis
I don’t see what the big deal is with Mayo and Conley couldn’t carry Rondo’s jock…I like Landry and Scola but not enough to trade Rondo for. Lawson/Gallinari is interesting though. I think a Rubio/(insert young talented scorer from Minny here) deal intrigues me even more though.
see im the opposite as a memphis guy I LOVE conley he is a very underrated defender and outside shooter… Mayo has underachieved but his potential is humungous. On the other hand I HATE scola, I think he’s been overrated every single season and he will never be worth what teams are willing to pay him. He is in Perkins’ category with me, Cant stand to watch them play. I think getting rubio is a pipe dream at this point, that dude is never leaving minnesota, especially with how he is drawing fans there now
I guess I need to see more than 3 starts from Bradley to believe he can be the starting PG this season and not have a proven guy even on the roster. Do you trust E’Twaun Moore right now to back up AB?
I actually would prefer Moore over Bradley to be honest. He is much more disciplined and can shoot the ball much better. Bradley has really improved, but he seems to take the game (especially offense) at a level that is too fast for him to handle. He is trying too hard to be fast, and that leads to mistakes. If he can improve his shot and slow his game down a little, he could be a insane player and could really be a starting point guard in a year or two. Moore has the stuff, but he doesn’t get much playing time (neither does JaJuan Johnson who is very good, but averaging 3 minutes a game). I think AB and Moore might be able to work of the bench together with Moore as a shooting guard once Bradley slows down a bit. I went to Purdue with Johnson and Moore, and have been a Celtics fan since I was little….these two boys can play and really need more court time to prove it to people. It also seems like our veteran players really like them and think they have huge potential. Here is an article to read about what the vets say about their rookies this year:
http://www.jconline.com/article/20120122/SPORTS02010201/201220335/Duo-learning-they-adjust-being-Boston-s-Boiler-connection?odyssey=tab%7Ctopnews%7Ctext%7CFRONTPAGE
I think Conley peaked at OSU with Oden. Mayo’s potential wont be reached in Memphis so maybe a coach like Doc could bring it out of him. People probably thought KG would never leave Minny either. You don’t think they would love Rondo dishing to Love just as much or more?
I think because those two have played in Memphis their true skills have been a bit ignored/overlooked as far as Rubio, he is younger, a better passer and a better contract than Rondo with unlimited potential, Rondo needs the right system to succeed, Rubio doesnt (at least from what I’ve seen
I want to keep both of them.
Definitely a good topic for postgame this week. I’m covering for Lee Herman co-hosting tomorrow and scheduled to co-host Friday. Call in guys let’s talk more about it.
Oh btw, Gary Washburn covered the same topic in the Boston Globe today, riding on Sannicandro’s coattails a bit. LOL.
He couldn’t make two with a pencil and has dubious basketball IQ.