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With training camp underway, it’s time for us to break down the Celtics' roster to give you an idea of what the team’s depth chart will look like for the 2023-24 season.
Rather than classifying players with the traditional 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 positional tags, we’re taking a page out of President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens’ book by placing each athlete into one of the following categories:
- Ball Handlers – Typically played by the 1.
- Wings – A hybrid between the 2, the 3, and sometimes the 4.
- Bigs – A hybrid between the 4 and the 5.
Last week we broke down the bigs and wings, so all that’s left to cover are Boston’s ball handlers.
The Celtics have several players who are capable of facilitating the offense, including a few wings and bigs; however, we’re just highlighting the five guys who specialize in that role listed in order of minutes played per game last season.
Jrue Holiday
Boston made a massive last-minute roster move last weekend by trading for a new primary ball handler in Jrue Holiday. The 14-year veteran brings a long list of accomplishments to the table, along with top-notch work ethic and leadership.
Last season, Holiday earned his second career All-Star nod, his fifth consecutive All-Defense selection (including his third as a member of the First Team), and his third Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year Award in a four-year span. This all came after averaging 19.3 points, 7.4 assists 5.1 rebounds, and 1.2 steals per game as the lead point guard on a Bucks team that boasted the best record in the league.
The last Celtics player to put up such prolific single-season assist numbers was Rajon Rondo, also the only member of the organization to reach that mark in the last 30 years. There's no reason why that number should dip much for Holiday. He has never been surrounded by so many elite shooters, so many scoring options to whom he can distribute.
Holiday’s offensive presence should also take some of the pressure off All-NBA wings Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum while complementing both of their games.
Derrick White
Midway through last season, Marcus Smart suffered an ankle sprain which sidelined the starting point guard for 11 games. That not only opened the door for Derrick White to step in as the team’s primary ball handler but also seemed to be a turning point in his season.
During Smart’s absence, White averaged 20.1 points, 5.8 assists, and 4.6 rebounds per game, and earned an Eastern Conference Player of the Week nod. He continued to produce impressive numbers, even after Smart returned, and was one of the team’s top playmakers throughout the rest of the season.
This season, White will likely play a similar role, whether he’s starting at shooting guard or serving as Holiday’s backup point guard. Either way, he’ll see his fair share of ball-handling responsibility.
On the other end of the floor, White and Holiday will make up arguably the most feared defensive backcourt in the league. Last season, they took up two of the four guard spots on the All-Defensive team, Holiday being an elite ballhawk and White being the best shot-blocking guard in the entire league.
Payton Pritchard
This past offseason, the Celtics lost two high-minute ball handlers (Smart and Malcolm Brogdon) while gaining only one back (Holiday). That means there will be minutes up for grabs at the point guard spot, and Payton Pritchard is in a great position to snag some of them.
Pritchard’s role was inconsistent last season, but that had little to do with the quality of his production and more to do with the abundance of talent the C’s had at the position. He always stepped up when called upon, including in the regular-season finale when he earned a start and delivered his first career triple-double.
There may not be another player on the team who is more eager to prove himself than Pritchard is heading into this season. And his track record, dating three years back to his rookie season, speaks for itself. He’s a career 40.0 percent shooter from 3-point range, an elite dribbler, and a strong passer, and he’s in line to carve out a solid role now that the point guard log jam has been cleared up a bit.
Dalano Banton
Dalano Banton left a historic impression on the Celtics in the second-to-last game of the 2022-23 regular season when the then-Raptors’ point guard exploded for 10 points on 4-for-4 shooting from the field in the final 3:32 of action, his only minutes of the game. It marked the second-fewest minutes logged in a double-digit scoring effort on perfect shooting in NBA history.
A few months later, the Celtics snatched Banton out of the free agency pile and brought the former Massachusetts prep school standout back to the Bay State.
The third-year guard is an exciting offensive player, who can gallop upcourt in transition, drive through contact and finish at the rim, and can also operate as a pick-and-roll ballhandler. He’s extremely long for his position, measuring in at 6-foot-9 with a standing reach of just over nine feet.
Celtics fans will also be pleased to know that Banton’s favorite player growing up was Rajon Rondo, after whom he modeled his passing game.
J.D. Davison
Returning in his second season on a two-way contract is 20-year-old point guard J.D. Davison.
The 2022 second-round pick spent most of last season in the G League where he ranked among the top five in both total assists (227) and assist average (8.7) with the Maine Celtics.
Davison also saw limited action in 12 regular-season NBA games where he had a few opportunities to show off his passing skills and explosive athleticism. On top of that, he’s led the Summer League in total assists in each of the last two years.
Davison will likely see himself in a similar role this season, as the youngster continues to develop while splitting his time between Portland and Boston.
