The Celtics have spent years being a defense that nobody wanted to deal with. They’ve protected the paint, boxed out, and stayed disciplined. What they haven’t usually done is turn games into turnover-fueled chaos.
That part may be changing fast.
Joe Mazzulla’s approach has pushed Boston toward a different kind of pressure game, one built around winning the possession battle. That shift helped shape moves like the Mitchell Robinson signing and the Jaylen Brown-Paul George swap, and it also points to a bigger role this season for players such as Baylor Scheierman, Hugo Gonzalez, and Jordan Walsh.
The early signs have been loud. Boston opened preseason by forcing 10 steals in a win over the Cavaliers on Thursday night, then ramped it up to 16 in Saturday’s blowout of the 76ers in Boston.
The most striking part came against Philadelphia. Baylor Scheierman and Paul George each finished with five steals, a number that jumps off the page on its own. It looks even more unusual when you factor in the minutes: George played 24, and Scheierman only 19.
According to Sean Grande, no Celtics player in franchise history had ever posted five or more steals in fewer than 25 minutes before. Preseason or not, Boston had two players do it in the same game.
The raw stat is fun, but the larger point matters more. The Celtics already have the ingredients for a nasty defense: perimeter defenders who can hold their own, two centers who protect the rim and dominate the glass, and no obvious weak link opponents can circle and attack. If they can add real turnover generation to that mix, they’ll be adding fast breaks and easy points on top of everything else.
That would take an already strong unit and push it into another tier.
Even without the steals boost, Boston finished fourth in defensive rating last season while ranking 28th in steals. If the Celtics make a real jump in takeaways, the rest of the league is going to feel it.
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Paul George Just Sent Celtics Fans A Clear Jayson Tatum Message
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George has made it clear he does not want the spotlight framed as a two-man race, and that matters for how this partnership could be judged in Boston. Rather than chasing the label of the guy, he wants to complement Tatum and help push him into a higher conversation, which tells Celtics fans a lot about the tone George wants to set before the season even starts. [Read more 🡒]