The Boston Celtics, who started off the year extremely slow, have won their past three games, and look to be finally clicking on offense. They were 28th in offensive efficiency, despite being 2nd in defense. They have jumped up to 14th on that list, mostly because of some lineup changes made by ingenious coach Brad Stevens.
One of these changes involved all-star forward Gordon Hayward. Coming off a brutal ankle injury, Hayward was struggling to get back in the system. Kyrie Irving said Hayward needs to be more aggressive, and that he passes too much. To fix this, Brad Stevens put Gordon Hayward on the bench, as the sixth man. Since then, he has averaged nearly 13 points per game. More importantly, his benching gives Marcus Morris the starting role. Morris is in the midst of a breakout season, averaging about 18 points per game. Morris meshes better with Kyrie Irving because he is a 3 and D type of player, that doesn't need the ball in his hands.
Another reason that has contributed to the Celtics success is swingman Jaylen Brown being injured. He has sat out the last three games with a back injury, and the Celtics have performed much better without him.
His absence has created an opportunity for Marcus Smart to be the starting shooting guard. Smart might seem like he takes terrible shots, and that is partly true. However, Smart gives the Celtics a much-needed boost in team spirit, as they were previously playing with almost no energy before. Smart plays hard and tough and is one of the only players on the Celtics that is loud and outspoken. He showed that against the Timberwolves last night, when he intercepted a pass, then threw it over his head to Jayson Tatum for the slam. He has been worth every penny of the 52 million dollar contract he received this summer.
When Jaylen Brown comes back, expect the Celtics to try and see how he does coming off the bench. He has already said he has no problem doing it, as long as the team is winning. The Celtics would form a scarily strong bench with Terry Rozier, Brown, and Hayward, one that would destroy other teams' second units. If the Celtics can keep their winning streak up, they should be back in contention for the Eastern Conference title.
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