BOSTON -- There’s a balancing act that all teams play when it comes to their schedule, one that involves focusing on the moment but keeping an eye out on what’s on the horizon.
Few teams have done a better job of handling those time continuums, than the Boston Celtics.
They will be the first to hit the official halfway point of the season when they host Cleveland on Wednesday for what will be regular season game No. 41 for them.
Regardless of how the Cavs game plays out, the first half of the season has been a resounding success for Boston on several fronts which includes them having the best record in the East.
To achieve that kind of success requires the contributions of many in a way that stands out both individually and as a collective group.
We’ve seen how well they have worked together to achieve their lofty status in the East.
But how have they fared individually?
Boston Celtics
Here are the midseason grades for each of the Celtics this season.
GUARDS
KYRIE IRVING
Stats: 24.8 points; 4.9 assists; 3.1 rebounds. Shooting 40.4 percent from 3-point range this season.
Summary: There was really no sense of what Boston was getting with Irving other than a talented scorer with magician-like skills when it comes to handling the basketball. As a player he has been all the Celtics could hope for, and then some. He is one of just four players in the league this season with 30 or more games scoring at least 20 points. Defensively, he has been significantly better than billed. But his most important contributions have come in terms of his leadership. He has mentored players off the floor, kept their spirits high during games and delivered passionate speeches during halftimes in which they rallied for wins after not-so-great starts. Grade: A
MARCUS SMART
Stats: 9.5 points; 4.9 assists; 3.7 rebounds per game. Shot 37 percent from the field in December, his best month shooting this season.
Summary: There are few players who can impact the game on the perimeter defensively, the way Smart does. He is a passionate, highly intense competitor that hasn’t met a guard yet that he doesn’t think he can shut down or at least make work awfully hard to score. The back-to-back offensive fouls he drew against Houston’s James Harden speak to how he tends to elevate his play defensively, when the team needs it the most. Still, Smart’s shooting remains the biggest weakness to his game. In the month of December, Smart shot 37 percent from the field and 31 percent from 3-point range which made for the best shooting month of the season thus far. That said, Smart’s defense has overshadowed his struggles from the field. Grade: B
TERRY ROZIER
Season stats: 9.1 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.1 assists per game. Leads all NBA reserves in minutes played (932) this season.
Summary: Remember that kid who wasn’t doing so hot in class, but managed to damn near ace his last few tests that made his grade for the class a respectful one? On this team this season, that would be Terry Rozier. Despite playing more minutes off the bench this season than any backup in the NBA, Rozier didn’t have the numbers or steady impact you come to expect from a player logging significant minutes. And this past week, it seems everything finally started to come together for him. His defense and rebounding have been strong all season, but he has finally started to give them that much-needed jolt offensively that had been missing for the most part. In fact, he has reached double figures scoring in each of Boston’s last four games which is a first for the third-year guard. If he continues along those lines, the Celtics’ bench will only get better and his role even more enhanced than it is currently. Grade: B
SHANE LARKIN
Season stats: 3.6 points; 1.2 assists; 1.2 rebounds. Celtics 18-3 this season when he plays seven or more minutes.
Summary: He has been Brad Stevens’ “In Case of an Emergency” option for most of this season which has led to the bulk of his playing time coming in the fourth quarter. He doesn’t play major minutes and in all likelihood that’s not going to change anytime soon. But to Larkin’s credit, he has made the most of his time on the floor which is why Stevens has shown no hesitation to turn to him when he wants to change the pace of a game. Grade: B
KADEEM ALLEN
Season stats: 1.0 points, 0.7 rebounds per game. One of two players Boston has signed to two-way contracts.
Summary: With most of his time spent with Boston’s G-League affiliate the Maine Red Claws, Allen’s NBA body of work isn’t a long one. And like most of Boston’s backups, he has shown he too can add value to winning for the Celtics. In a three-second stint against New York earlier this season, Allen forced a Knicks turnover late in the game. He still needs to show that he can knock down shots in the NBA, but defensively-speaking, he’s about where the Celtics would want him to be right now. Grade: B
WINGS
JAYSON TATUM
Season stats: 14.1 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game. Shooting 47.1 percent from 3-point range, tops in the NBA among players appearing in at least 20 games with at least three, 3-point attempts per game.
Summary: Being selected with the No. 3 pick on a team that was among the best already, Tatum has had to prove himself not only to opponents but also to his teammates. He has made the transition to the NBA game look a lot easier than it really is, showing a level of confidence and comfortability with the team and the NBA as a whole that you don’t expect to see from a rookie let lone a rookie who is just 19 years old. He has been among the league’s rookie leaders in several categories in addition to ranking among the NBA’s top two or three players for most of the season in 3-point shooting. Grade: A-
JAYLEN BROWN
Season stats: 14.4 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.2 assists per game. Has eight, 20-point games which is third among second year players (Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid has 19; Denver’s Jamal Murray has 13).
Summary: The role that the Celtics have looked for Brown to play this season, is not an easy one. Along with being charged with being the team’s best perimeter defender, Gordon Hayward’s season-ending left ankle injury forced Brown to evolve into being the team’s No. 2 scorer behind Kyrie Irving. That’s a lot to ask of a second-year wing player, particularly one who plays for the best team in the East and will surely get the best shot from opponents going forward. Grade: B+
SEMI OJELEYE
Season stats: 2.6 points, 2.0 rebounds, 0.2 assists per game. Sixty-eight of his eighty-eight shot attempts, or 77.3 percent, have been 3-pointers.
Summary: The dream of any player taken in the second round, is to make the team and whatever happens after that, happens. Ojeleye hasn’t just been warming up the bench. He has been utilized as a defender who if you leave open, can make you pay with a 3-pointer. He’s nursing a sore back injury that has kept him off the floor for the last four games. But that doesn’t diminish from what has been a very good start to a promising NBA career. Grade: B+
MARCUS MORRIS
Season stats: 11.6 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game. Has missed 21 games to injury this season, after having missed 11 games in the five previous seasons combined.
Summary: One of the more difficult Celtics to grade this season, a sore left knee all season has made Morris a difficult player for Boston to rely on despite seemingly playing well whenever he’s healthy. We saw that in the final game of 2017 for Boston when Morris came off the bench and scored 15 points in just under 17 minutes as he shot 5-for-7 from the field and 4-for-5 on 3’s. The fact that he played in back-to-back games was a positive. And the fact that Boston as a couple days in between its next game, bodes well for him getting enough rest to where he can play on Wednesday and be a factor. Grade: B-
ABDEL NADER
Season stats: 2.1 points, 1.1 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game. Played a career-high 21 minutes in Boston’s 99-98 comeback win over Houston.
Summary: Nader has not had many opportunities to play this season, in part because of Boston’s depth at the wing position but also due to Nader’s struggles defensively. While he is far from being a lock-down defender, he has shown growth in this part of his game and that, along with injuries, has afforded him some spot-duty assignments that to his credit, he made the most of. There are plenty of areas in need of improvement when it comes to his game, but he is trending in the right direction. Grade: B-
JABARI BIRD
Season stats: 1.3 points, 0.5 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game. Signed two-way contract with the Celtics.
Summary: The first two-way player used by the Celtics, Bird was drafted by Boston late in the second round because of his scoring potential. But in summer league and later in training camp, Boston saw the potential for him to be a really good defender. In fact, his first time on the floor was against Philadelphia – Boston’s first win of the season – and the impact he made in the victory was indeed felt on the defensive end of the floor and not scoring. Grade: B-
GORDON HAYWARD
Season stats: 2.0 points, 1.0 rebounds per game. Suffered season-ending ankle injury in season-opening loss at Cleveland.
Summary: It’s impossible to accurately reflect what Gordon Hayward accomplished this first half of the season while playing less than five minutes due to a season-ending ankle injury. While he has not been able to contribute on the floor with his play, his presence has definitely been a positive for the Celtics. He is attacking the process of rehabilitation in a similar fashion to how the Celtics are attacking the process of becoming an elite team in the NBA, this season. The two have gone hand-in-hand all season. Grade: A-
BIGS
AL HORFORD
Season stats: 13.6 points, 7.9 rebounds, 5.2 assists per game. The Celtics are 18.2 when he scores 14 or more points.
Summary: There’s no getting around the increased comfort level that exists with Al Horford and the Boston Celtics now compared to where things stood a year ago. His numbers are up across the board and maybe most important, he’s having more high impact nights which bodes well for Boston’s efforts to continue their ascension up the Eastern Conference standings. Grade: B+
DANIEL THEIS
Season stats: 4.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, 0.6 assists per game. Had 15 rebounds in Dec. 23 win over Chicago, the most grabbed by a Celtic player this season.
Summary: The 25-year-old rookie has been a pleasant surprise to the Boston Celtics this season. They suspected Theis could help, but they didn’t realize just how much until he got on the floor. He is an active rebounder and defender who has shown an ability to make the most of his chance to play and when that opportunity isn’t there, he patiently waits for his next chance to contribute. Grade: B+
ARON BAYNES
Season stats: 5.8 points, 5.2 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game. Has made a career-high 29 starts this season after having made 23 total in his five previous NBA seasons.
Summary: The first half of the season saw Baynes showcase an offensive scoring touch that few saw coming, at least not as consistently as we saw the first few weeks of the season. But as time passed, Baynes hasn’t looked as much for his shot but rather, a shot to impact the game in a meaningful way. However, Baynes continues to play defense at a high level, evident by his defensive rating of 94.5 which is tops among all NBA players logging at least 15 minutes of court time this season. Grade: B
GUERSCHON YABUSELE
Season stats: 1.9 points, 1.5 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game. Had a career-high six points against Miami on Dec. 20.
Summary: The Dancing Bear hasn’t had much of a reason to dance, although his play has looked better lately. The potential is there for him to be a really solid player but he has to do more with the limited opportunities he gets. Grade: B-