Heading into the 2021-22 season, the Boston Celtics had one starting caliber guard on the roster, Marcus Smart, and he was slated to have his first full-time season. Dennis Schroeder and Peyton Pritchard rounded out the position on the bench, but it was clear Boston needed more help. Over the next year, they added two high-profile point guards to the mix, creating a monster three-header of Smart, Derrick White, and Malcolm Brogdon.
In the Celtics’ full season with White and Brogdon, they fell short of their ultimate goal, losing to the Celtics Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals. But how did White and Brogdon fare?
Derek White
Perhaps the biggest upset of the season, White was formidable for the Celtics in every sense of the word. New coach Joe Mazzola decided to roll him as the starter over Robert Williams, and while the priority offensive id rubbed some people the wrong way, the results spoke for themselves.
White was much better as a starter than coming off the bench. He appeared in all 82 games for the Celtics, had a career-high three-point percentage at 38.1% (out of a low-volume rookie season), and was named to the All-Defensive Second Team, leading all NBA guards in blocks.
His regular season showed why Brad Stephens invested so much of the asset in trading for him, but the playoffs took his Boston status to the next level.
There was an argument that White was Boston’s third-best player in the regular season, and in the first round of the playoffs, he confirmed that thinking. From the jump, Wyatt was phenomenal. He got MVP cheers at the TD Garden vs Atlanta Hawks. He had a few mixed games, but was one of Boston’s most consistent players in the postseason.
And though it will likely be erased from history by Boston’s Game 7 loss to the Heat, White’s Game 6 winner took the world by storm for 48 hours.
White established himself as the best point guard on the roster this past season, and while Smart’s place in the starting lineup likely won’t change hands, there is a real case for White to be a full-time starter. Smart is a better playmaker and general defender, Brogdon a better shooter, but White proved to be a more complete keeper. Running big two lineups may be the best way to maximize Boston’s potential as a defensive unit, but taking White out of the starting lineup shouldn’t be the way to do it.
As the Celtics explore potential trade options this summer, the guard rotation will be viewed through a magnifying glass. Having White, Smart and Brogdon together on the roster could be redundant, particularly given the team’s lack of wing depth. And with the White Season just introduced, it should be the last to be considered in trade talks.
Malcolm Brogdon
Last summer, Boston’s trade for Malcolm Brogdon seemed like the perfect move. They just lost to Golden State Warriors In the NBA Finals And he desperately needed another man who could direct the crime and create for himself.
Brogdon brought that to the table.
For the first time in his career, Brogdon was asked to come off the bench, which worked out perfectly. The reduced load allowed Brogdon to remain healthy, resulting in him playing in the second most games of his career (67) and the most since his rookie season.
He pulled off effective performance after effective performance, and finished the season as the fourth-best three-point player in the league (44.4%). By the end of the year, he was named Sixth Man of the Year.
Everything seemed to work perfectly until it didn’t.
Boston brought Brogdon on board in part for his shooting creativity, but arguably the biggest reason was because of his playmaking. Smart was the only true playmaker on the roster the previous season, and Brogdon was coming off two consecutive seasons averaging nearly six assists per game.
And while he delivered 3.7 assists per game in his role off the bench, that number dropped to 2.9 in the playoffs, as Brogdon turned into another first-score option for a team full of them. Instead of being a much-needed starting point guard for Boston alongside Jason Tatum and Jaylen Brown, Brogdon has consistently called his own number, playing Kemba Walker and Kyrie Irving of the kind who failed to help the Celtics get over the hump.
His lack of high pass awareness was brutal, and he continually missed Robert Williams and the others rolling to the rim. He was also a terrible tackler on the edge, something that went off his usual trajectory in the regular season. Brogdon shot 50.0% five feet from the basket in the playoffs; Only five players shot worse than him from that distance, and four were eliminated in the first round. (The other was James Harden.)
This does not mean that Brogdon has no value. His three point shooting was crucial against Philadelphia Seventy Sixers. But Mazzola often misused the logic “a good three-point shot equals more minutes”. Brogdon’s shooting was important, but as the only keeper on the ground or primary ball handler, he left a lot to be desired in the playmaking department.
Brogdon tore a tendon in his arm and was playing through it against the heat. Unfortunately, the stroke disappeared. He eventually got fewer and fewer minutes until he was completely unplayable, which was far from his fault.
His struggles culminated in the worst of times. He played only 7:05 in Game 7 against the Heat but was -15 – the third worst plus/minus on the team.
When reflecting on the Brogdon trade nearly a year later, it’s hard to say it was a loss. They’ve given up no player on every night, and while a first-round pick in this year’s draft would have been great, Brogdon holds more value than that.
At the same time, Brogdon didn’t provide the Celtics with what they should have wanted. His three-point hit and shot creation came in handy. Throughout the regular season and postseason, he was a consistent source of offense. But it was a one-man crime. Too often Brogdon called his own number instead of easily throwing the ball to Williams or kicking the ball to Tatum or Brown. Instead of serving as the pass-first point guard many had expected and hoped he would be, Brogdon turned to a better upgraded version of Schroeder, a player who clearly didn’t fit the Celtics’ needs. Brogdon obviously fits into the Celtics team a lot better than Schroder did, but at the end of the day, a first score mentality isn’t going to help lift the Celtics into the championship team they can be at their peak.
Now, with a summer of potential changes approaching, Brogdon looks like the obvious choice for the three guards to be traded. Smart’s defense and crafting are more valuable at point guard than Brogdon shooting, especially since the Celtics could substitute it for shooting at a more favorable position. Meanwhile, White’s all-around game makes him Boston’s best point guard next year.
Brogdon’s first season with the Celtics wasn’t a failure, but it wasn’t necessarily what the team needed. His initiative for a wing promotion or a major extra boost could be the team’s next step, and with how much Brogdon has in common with Boston’s need to re-sign Grant Williams, it makes even more sense.
The Celtics are in a much better position at point guard now than they were two seasons ago. Going from Walker, Smart, and Brad Wanamaker to Smart, White, and Brogdon is a huge improvement. But it has gotten to the point where playing guard can be very overwhelming.
In Game 1 against the Heat, Mazzola rotated eight men with White, Brogdon, and Peyton Pritchard on the bench. Three guards.
Trading one of the three guards for extra wing depth should be an avenue the Celtics are considering seriously this summer, and Brogdon could be the obvious option to be thrown in said deal.
White and Brogdon both had strong seasons. White was Boston’s third best player by the end of the season. But this year’s sixth man’s shortcomings, injury or not, have overshadowed his successes.