The Celtics’ wing room is still crowded, and Joe Mazzulla already has a problem on his hands.
Last season, Boston got a real boost from the injury to Jayson Tatum and the roster churn that followed. It opened the door for a wave of young wings to get real minutes, and for the most part, they responded. Jordan Walsh, Baylor Scheierman, Hugo Gonzalez, and even Ron Harper Jr. all had breakout moments in their own way, and by the time JT returned, Mazzulla was stuck juggling too many playable guys for too few spots.
That squeeze only got worse once Tatum was back. Sam Hauser and Jaylen Brown were still there, too, and every night seemed to leave someone on the outside looking in.
By the time the playoffs rolled around, Mazzulla mostly shut out Walsh, Baylor, and Hugo, and the result was hard to ignore. Those young wings were contributing, but Boston couldn’t find enough floor time for them, and the team paid for it.
That context makes the Celtics’ offseason decision to trade Brown look even more connected to the idea that the young wings were ready for bigger roles. The plan made sense on paper: clear room, spread responsibilities, and let the developing group keep growing.
But trading Brown didn’t empty the lane the way it might have seemed. Boston brought back Paul George, and after opening night, it’s obvious he’s not coming here to stand around.
George played 30 minutes in his debut, foul trouble and all, and looked like one of the team’s best players. He may not reach the 2400-plus minutes Brown logged last season, but there’s clearly no giant opening waiting on the wing.
Game one showed the issue right away. Walsh started both halves and still finished with just 13 minutes.
Scheierman and Hauser each got 18 off the bench. Gonzalez played only 9 minutes.
Harper Jr. never got off the bench.
Of course, it’s one game. The rotation will change, and the minutes will move around. But the early read is the same one Boston ran into late last season: there are too many wings fighting for too few possessions, and if those players aren’t even getting to the 20-minute mark, it’s hard for them to settle in and make a real impact.
Not every night is going to look like this, either. The opener was a tight one against the Pistons, and games like that naturally force a coach to tighten things up. There should be other chances for Boston to stretch the rotation and spread the floor a little more.
Still, this feels like a test Mazzulla is going to have to answer soon. Maybe the best players separate themselves.
Maybe he has to make choices that won’t make everybody happy. Maybe that means someone - or more than one someone - gets a DNP on a given night.
But an 11-man rotation with hockey-style substitutions doesn’t sound like the path to a steady, championship-level group.
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