BLOCK BUSTAL NEWS: Boston celtics former G league is no fire.
Deal for former G League Finals MVP moves 24-year-old guard to the West Coast for the Boston Celtics
While many former Celtics players were being dealt throughout the league, Brad Stevens made a few moves of his own. On deadline day, the Boston Celtics reached two agreements, according to sources from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Clearly, defense was the first priority. Tillman Xavier yesterday. Today’s Jaden Springer. In return for a second-round pick, the 2023 G League Finals Most Valuable Player and former University of Tennessee star joins the Celts’ bench group. The Philadelphia 76ers, who selected the North Carolina native in the first round of the 2021 NBA Draft, saw him participate in 32 games this season. Springer has increased his minutes per game under Nick Nurse from the previous campaign, scoring four points, 1.8 rebounds, and 0.8 steals in 11.8 minutes per game on average.
Then, according to MassLive, Stevens got to work with a team he had previously played for in the summer, sending 24-year-old Dalano Banton to the Portland Trail Blazers in exchange for a top-55 protected second-round choice. With the exception of a few games at the end of November and beginning of December, one of which he started at home against Atlanta, the former Toronto guard’s tenure with the Boston Celtics was marked by garbage time use.
Banton scored 31 points in a Maine uniform just five days ago, including five three-pointers and six rebounds.The former 76er was “strongly endorsed” by player improvement coach Tyler Lashbrook and Sam Cassell, who both coached him in Philadelphia, according to Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe. It’s clear why. This season, in a bigger role, Springer has accumulated eight games with multiple thefts or blocks. Springer has three or more steals in two of the last games, including four in a Golden State matchup. When Stephen Curry faced the former Volunteer, his offensive game appeared to be as stagnant as it had been the entire season. Whether he is a star or not, the native of Charlotte has demonstrated that he can defend above average in the NBA.
In terms of offensive rebounding, steals, and block rate, the defensive G-League steals leader is positioned in the 98th percentile above, according to Cleaning the Glass. He is the ideal addition to a Boston team that is loaded with stars. Although he doesn’t pose the greatest offensive threat, his athleticism enables him to finish near the hoop, especially during transition.
As the Boston Celtics fans saw in November, Springer is not afraid to call his own number and attack the rack with force. In fact, in that game against Boston, he was a plus-20, giving the home team much-needed energy. In addition to his two steals that night—one of which was a reverse slam to finish the play—he scored nine points. That block compilation above shows that he is also not afraid to deny non-rotational players. Earlier in the campaign, Springer sent Damian Lillard back on national television.
Springer’s exact role in Boston is still unknown, but he will undoubtedly light up the stage whenever he gets the chance. The young player will probably start behind Derrick White and Sam Hauser at the two, relieving Jrue Holiday and White of some of their opponents’ top perimeter scorer matchups.
The Blazers’ deal frees up a space on Boston’s roster for internal promotion or acquisition through the always exciting buyout market. Among the po Jaden Springer. tential buyout candidates are Robin Lopez, Marcus Morris Sr., an old acquaintance, and Joe Harris, who was just fired by Detriot. Keep an eye out; Stevens might be planning something else.