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When the Celtics signed Gordon Hayward last year, everyone expected the Celtics to come out of Eastern Conference. However, the Celtics' dreams shattered when they lost Hayward to a gruesome leg injury, just minutes into his Celtics debut.
This year, with Hayward back in the starting lineup after one year, there were a lot rumblings about whether he would play the way he was playing before the injury. Even though the Raptors have added Kawhi Leonard, who is a top three two-way player in the NBA, many pundits have given the Celtics the edge in the LeBron-less Eastern Conference.
However, the Celtics have been playing very poorly and after one quarter of the NBA almost done, they are at the sixth spot on the Eastern Conference Standings. Let us take a look at three Celtics players who disappointed the most so far.
#3 Marcus Smart
Marcus Smart has been a stellar defender, since the day he entered the league. He was one of the key reasons for the Celtics' success on the defensive end last season. The elite defender signed a four-year, $52 million contract after the end of 2017-18 NBA season to return to the team.
However, Smart has not been so great to start the season. After averaging 10.2 points, 3.5 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game last season, his numbers took a great dip this season and is averaging just above 6 points per game this season. He is struggling to score and his defense has not been very great either.
Last night, he was delegated to the starting unit and the Celtics won on the road against the Pelicans. It will be interesting to see if Brad Stevens continue him in the starting lineup and if he does, will he be able to redeem himself.
#2 Terry Rozier
After having a terrific season last year and earning the nickname 'Scary Terry', everyone expected Rozier to come back stronger this year but he has not been impressive so far this season. He has been very unreliable for the Celtics and is definitely not looking like the kind of backup PG everyone thought he would be for Irving.
This month, he has struggled in a way no one expected him to and shot at a very poor 34.5 percent from the field, including 33.3 % from long range. His highest scoring game this season was against the Utah Jazz on the road. He scored 22 in Utah but the Celtics went on to lose the game.
He has been scoring in single-digits, for the most part, this season and for the Celtics to make any noise in the post-season, they need him to perform better. Rozier is averaging 7.9 points per game this season.
#1 Gordon Hayward
You might go ahead and say I am being harsh towards Gordon Hayward because he is just coming back from one of the scariest injuries ever seen in the NBA. However, with one-quarter of the season already done and dusted, the fans and many analysts are saying that the best thing to do for the Celtics is to trade him away.
After missing the entire season because of the horrific leg injury suffered just a few minutes into his Celtics debut, he is not looking like the player he was before the injury and the Celtics have been very poor with Hayward on the court.
He is now coming off the bench for the Celtics but that is not going to be the long-term solution for the Celtics. The best thing for the Celtics is to find a good package to trade him. However, I am really unsure if any team would be willing to trade for Hayward.
