The Celtics have a Paul George problem, and it has nothing to do with whether he can still help them.
That part is pretty easy to see. George fits what Joe Mazzulla wants.
He can space the floor, punish defenses as a catch-and-shoot threat, move the ball, and hold up on defense. Last season, he hit 41.7% of his catch-and-shoot threes, and he can still make things happen without dominating the ball.
In that sense, he looks like a clean fit next to Jayson Tatum.
But Boston is not bringing him in just to be a useful piece. The bigger issue is that the Celtics are going to lean on him like he’s still a top-tier star, even though that version of George is long gone.
At 36, he can still play. Celtics fans saw that up close in last season’s playoff series, when he put up 17.4 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 1.4 steals per game while shooting 48.9/55/77.8% and defending well over seven games.
That’s real production. It’s also not the same player who used to drive an offense during his Indiana Pacers years.
That gap matters, because Boston needs more than a finishing touch from him. The way this roster is set up, George is the second-best player, and the Celtics are going to need him to carry a heavy load. That is where the fit gets shaky.
He found a role with the Philadelphia 76ers last season that made sense. George was more of a connector there, a guy who could fill in wherever the game asked for it: hit spot-up threes, create a little offense, make a few plays, defend, and take over in bursts when necessary. He was basically their fourth option behind Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe, and Joel Embiid, and that setup let him work.
Boston won’t be able to offer him that kind of breathing room. Beyond Tatum, there isn’t anyone on the roster who clearly has more offensive responsibility than George. Derrick White has already shown he’s not a dependable No. 2 or No. 3 option, and it’s still unclear whether Payton Pritchard will start next season or stay in his sixth-man role.
So yes, George can help the Celtics. He can be a strong addition, and there’s plenty to like about what he brings. The question is whether Boston is asking for too much from a player who can still contribute, but probably not at the level they need.
In Other News...
Celtics Got An Eye-Opening Summer Read On Neemias Queta
The Celtics have had a front-row seat to some international basketball in the early summer, with Neemias Queta, Hugo Gonzalez, Luka Garza and Amari Williams all away representing their national teams. For Boston, the most eye-catching showing so far has come from Queta, who helped Portugal stun Spain in the ongoing 2027 FIBA EuroBasket World Cup Qualifiers with a strong all-around effort that hinted at how far his game can travel when he is given a bigger role.
Luka Garza also turned in a useful outing for Bosnia and Herzegovina in a win over Italy, adding another reminder that Bostons end-of-roster and depth options are getting meaningful game reps while the Celtics wait for the next stage of the summer to unfold. Quetas performance, though, is the one worth circling back to for a team that has spent the season looking for reliable size and energy, because international play can sometimes reveal a little more than summer workouts ever do. [Read more 🡒]
Celtics Still Face One Lineup Call That Could Reshape The Rotation
The Celtics projected starting group is coming into focus, with Jayson Tatum, Derrick White, Paul George and Neemias Queta expected to occupy four spots when the new season opens. The one lingering question is at point guard, where Payton Pritchard has emerged as the leading candidate to take the job, even as Boston continues to weigh other options such as Hugo Gonzalez and Baylor Scheierman.
Pritchards case is easy to understand: he has become one of the teams most reliable guards and would give the Celtics another steady presence alongside their established core. The debate is less about whether he can handle the role than whether Boston gets more from him by starting him or by preserving his value as a sixth-man spark, a call that could shape how the rotation settles in around the rest of the roster. [Read more 🡒]
Celtics May Have A Mitchell Robinson Problem In Big Games
Mitchell Robinson arrived with the kind of defensive reputation the Celtics wanted to add to a playoff roster, but the fit gets trickier once the games tighten up. Boston knew it was getting an elite rim protector and rebounder, and it also knew the offensive limitations that have followed him for years. In a regular-season setting, those tradeoffs can be easier to manage.
In the highest-leverage moments, though, the math changes fast. Robinsons free-throw issues and injury history have already led to reduced playing time in critical games, including during the 2026 playoffs with the Knicks, and that is the sort of problem Joe Mazzulla may have to solve on the fly. If opponents start using intentional fouling to force Boston into uncomfortable decisions, the Celtics may need to rethink how they deploy him when the margin for error disappears. [Read more 🡒]