NBA training camps open in the final week of September, and between now and then, we’ll be pondering 20 questions about the Boston Celtics as we head into the new season. Today we look at Aaron Nesmith, who is hoping his opportunity grows.
__________________________________
Yes, the questions surrounding Payton Pritchard and Aaron Nesmith are the same. Nesmith may not have reached the same “darling” status as Pritchard (probably because he only started consistently contributing later in the season), but they’re both in the same boat.
However, Nesmith has certain advantages Pritchard does not (and vice versa), and he plays a position that could make him a little more valuable in the long run. Nesmith is nearly two full years younger (he turns 22 in a month) and at 6’5”, the Celtics could see Nesmith as a player who might ultimately defend one-through-three.
Right now they’d settle for him guarding the guy in front of him, which hasn’t always been easy for Nesmith. He spent last season making some stellar defensive plays, mostly because he flung himself around the court like a drunk luchador. The reckless abandon resulted in some fun plays on both ends, and earned Nesmith some consideration as a contributor this season.
The next step for him is to be a more reliable individual defender who can stay in front of his man, defend without fouling, switch effectively, and help his teammates without losing his own man when the ball swings to the other side. As much as Nesmith is known for his shooting, his ability to defend is going to be what unlocks his true potential this season.
He doesn’t need to be a Marcus Smart type. He doesn’t need to be Jrue Holiday. He just needs to be effective. If he can be, then Boston will create turnovers and transition opportunities, which is where a shooter like Nesmith can thrive. Trailing 3-pointers in transition are amazing for extending runs, and can be more soul-crushing than a fastbreak dunk.
And while the Celtics would like him to rein in some of what made him look more like a crash test dummy than an NBA forward, that willingness to do whatever it takes to make a play is something Ime Udoka, theoretically, can use.
Nesmith and Pritchard can be the energy twins; Boston’s two dueling Dani Rojas-types who seem born caffeinated and for whom basketball truly is life. When the energy sags, Udoka can give his team a dose of one, or both, of these guys and hope it’s a B-12 shot that snaps them out of whatever funk they were in.
He surely wants to be more than that, so he has to build on what he was able to do in summer league. The focus on contested shots was a smart one for Nesmith because those are the shots he will likely get, and need to make, this season when Boston is in the half court.
As nice as the high-energy might be, and as much as Udoka might want to increase the pace, Boston will still probably be more of a half-court team. They were 20th in the league in pace last season without a real change in primary personnel. Udoka’s emphasis on defense and ball-movement could pump that up a few notches and into the top-half of the NBA, but we probably shouldn’t expect them to be an up-and-down team.
That means Nesmith’s offensive contribution will most likely be against hard-charging closeouts after Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Marcus Smart, or Dennis Schröder drive and collapse the defense. Nesmith is going to have to become a trusted spot-up guy who can calmly make defenses pay for taking one step too many into the paint.
Shot-making and solid defense will be Nesmith’s path to meaningful minutes. It might even make him a starter if some of the other Celtics options, like Josh Richardson, Juancho Hernangomez, or even Al Horford in a double-big scenario, don’t pan out. In a best-case scenario, the Celtics could count on Nesmith to be one of their primary deep threats while also being a solid defender.
The Celtics could live with the balance skewing one way or the other (like being an okay shooter and a great defender or a lights-out shooter and marginal defender), but it would eat away at his usage.
The next step down will make Nesmith Boston’s All-Syrup Super Squishy, fun for a bit, but only good in certain situations. For a team that really needs some shooting to come through, watching an alleged shooter only get minutes for being a maniac would be a bit disappointing.
Everyone would love to see Nesmith be more than that. His ceiling is actually quite high if he can figure a few things out. One or two of those things might start falling into place this season, which would be a nice step for the Celtics.
The 20 questions series: