The One Offensive Adjustment the Boston Celtics Must Address Before Opening Night

The Boston Celtics have had either the league’s best or second-best offensive rating in each of the last four regular seasons, and they’ve done so while generally being one of the slowest-paced teams in the league. They were last in pace, which is simply the amount of possessions a team uses in 48 minutes, this past season, next-to-last the prior season, and they were 19th and 20th the two seasons before that.

A lot has been made of the slow pace of Boston’s offense, which has often been the result of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown slowing the game down to pick out their mismatches or clear out a side so they can isolate. They have both been tremendous isolation scorers, so it’s been a minor quibble in the grand scheme of the offense, but a quibble nonetheless.

To be fair, there is no direct correlation between pace and winning. There were four teams above .500 in last year’s top-10 in pace. The 22-win Utah Jazz were second. The 17-win Washington Wizards were sixth. There is definitely something to the adage, “you play fast because you have to.” Teams with no cohesive offense or bona fide star to handle the scoring often take the first decent shot they can find because there's little hope of finding another one.

To further support this notion, eight of the bottom 10 teams in pace were above .500, including five of the league’s 50-plus-win teams.

So why on earth should there be any emphasis on Boston pumping up the pace?

Because they have to

… and also, because they have the type of team that can.

Jayson Tatum is the lone superstar remaining on the team, so he can’t be on the floor at all times. Also, we still can’t be completely sure that he’s as durable as he used to be before the Achilles injury. Until the Celtics figure out if Tatum can get back to 36 minutes a game or so, they’ll have to find other ways to keep the scoring up.

The addition of Mitchell Robinson means the Celtics will have quality rebounding and rim protection on the floor for most or all of their games. That will allow Tatum-less lineups to get out in transition a little more often, either by rebounding misses or off blocked or altered shots. Strong rim protection means teams opponent field goal percentage will likely drop some this season, and those misses have to turn into kick-aheads to put pressure on the opponent’s transition defense.

With Tatum on the floor, the Celtics could be one of the best defensive rebounding frontcourts in the league. In limited time last season, Tatum’s defensive rebounding percentage was 31.3%, which would have been third in the league had it lasted a full season. Robinson’s 26.1% last season would have been eighth if he played enough games to qualify. Neemias Queta was 20th at 20.7%.

Any combination of those two will mean more possessions for Boston. Pushing the ball in transition helps create cross-matches and mistakes, which Boston can attack even if the initial push is stopped. It’s important to punish teams for missing shots by getting in transition.

It can get guys into rhythm

Trailing three-pointers in those situations can often be the best types of threes to take, and if Tatum is the initial rebounder kicking it ahead, he will generally be the guy trailing for those shots. For a guy who has been a below-average three-point shooter since the 2021-22 season (35.4% over 312 regular season games), finding a way to get him into a rhythm is important.

One of Tatum’s weaknesses in recent seasons has been searching for his three-point rhythm early in games rather than letting the game come to him. Tatum’s best games are almost always when he’s hot from three, so he can go looking for his own shot a little too much when he’s struggling, often leading to contested step-backs. If Tatum can get a few triples where he’s stepping into a clean look while trailing a play, then those shots can replace a few of the step-backs and maybe push his percentage up into the higher 30’s.

He’s not the only player who will benefit. Anyone can end up trailing the play, or even relocating after the initial pass to find himself getting a cleaner look than he would in a standard half-court offense. No one is expecting the Celtics to channel Red Auerbach and Tommy Heinsohn, but a handful of early transition opportunities off defensive rebounds can change a lot about a game.

Because they’ll need to in the playoffs

… and fourth quarters

The Celtics slowing the game WAY down in the fourth quarter and in the playoffs has been a big issue in recent years. Those are points where the game naturally slows down, but the Celtics have tended to be among the biggest offenders.

This might be where I’m most interested to see the difference between Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum as the lone stars. Brown is much more wired to score in those situations, but he did improve as a passer last season. Tatum is obviously a scorer, but he’s been a more willing passer, and with defenses geared towards him in these situations, I wonder if playing a bit faster to burn double-teams could become a by-product.

The Celtics worst offensive habit has been standing and watching after getting a superstar the mismatch he wanted. Pigeon hunting is common in those situations, but the Celtics have capable offensive players who can screen and cut while Tatum is staring down the Jalen Brunsons of the world. There is a balance between creating space and letting the defense rest while a glorified game of one-on-one is happening.

Some of that can be alleviated by pushing and trying to score when clutch transition opportunities present themselves, even when Boston has a lead. Some of that can be more of a tempo thing that at least gets a defense thinking.

“Play faster” is something everyone will talk and write about, probably many times, over the next eight months. No one is trying to turn them into something they're not, but even with a slower star like Tatum, the rebounding and defense on this Celtics team will hand them chances to push the pace on a silver platter. They have to get into the habit of taking them.

They won’t be first in pace next season, but there's no reason for them to be last, either.

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