Coming into the offseason, the guard position was widely considered as an area of weakness for the Boston Celtics.
Brad Stevens looked to address those concerns with the addition of Mike Conley. The veteran guard, 38, signed a one-year veteran minimum deal with Boston at the start of free agency. Conley will be heading into his 20th NBA season.
During a recent episode of ‘Beneath The Banners,’ Conley shared his excitement at joining the Celtics.
“Too excited,“ Conley said. ”This is a legendary organization. I’ve been a fan of the game for a long time. The Celtics have been at the forefront of that. Just excited to be here.”
Conley will likely come off the bench for Boston this season, providing experienced ball-handling to help steady a young second unit. Last season, Conley played in 54 games for the Minnesota Timberwolves, 39 of which came from the bench.
During those 54 outings, Conley averaged 4.5 points, 1.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists. He shot 32.7% from two-point range and 33.7% from three-point range. Despite his struggles on the offensive end, Conley still shone as a connector, leader and at times, on-ball defender.
Boston has clearly signed Conley due to his professionalism and leadership. However, they’ll still need him to produce during the minutes he’s on the floor.
Celtics’ Brad Stevens Pleased To Sign Conley
During the same episode of ‘Beneath The Banners,’ Stevens shared his reasoning for bringing Conley to the Celtics.
“People talk about veteran leadership, and they talk about how important vets are,” Stevens said. “And my argument to that would be good vets are really important. Guys that really have a great understanding of where they are in their career, how they impact winning and the appropriate amount of expectations from the individual standpoint, and I think that that’s what you get with Mike. And he still, every time he plays, has a big impact on winning.”
Stevens continued.
“And so I think the balance of being able to play at a high level (and) not needing to play every minute of every game is an incredibly valuable thing, and it’s usually reserved for guys that have a good perspective on life. And Mike does — he certainly has that.”
Conley will undoubtedly be a solid addition to the Celtics locker room. Whether he’s a solid addition to their on-court rotation will remain to be seen, however.
Celtics Could Sign Milos Uzan
Even after Conley’s addition, the Celtics still look a little light at the guard position. Fortunately, Milos Uzan, an undrafted rookie out of Houston, impressed for the Celtics during Las Vegas Summer League.
Uzan will remain with Boston throughout training camp, having inked an Exhibit 10 contract. Therefore, he could earn the final two-way spot on Boston’s roster. Should Stevens look to keep Uzan around, he could find himself earning some run with Mazzulla’s team throughout the season, especially if Conley underwhelms.
Of course, the Celtics could always explore the trade market for another guard, too. However, it’s unlikely Brad Stevens will look to make any major changes ahead of the February trade deadline.
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