Can Brad Stevens and Isiah Thomas steer the Celtics into the upper echelon of the eastern conference this season?

The Boston Celtics are coming off a sneakily good off season. They did not pick up marquee free agents, however they improved their depth through the draft and free agency. Amir Johnson and David Lee help add veteran talent to a very inconsistent front court, while Terry Rozier and R.J Hunter add potential to the already bonafide back court.

David Lee had one of his best seasons in 2013-2014 with Golden State averaging 9.3 rebounds and 18.3 points per game. This adds a potential second scoring option besides Isiah Thomas.

They also drafted Jordan Mickey with their second round pick who adds defensive ability to their non existent paint defense. Mickey averaged 3.1 and 3.6 blocks during his two years in college. The only player to even eclipse these numbers was Shaquille O’neal during his tenure at LSU.

James Marsh, a proud Knicks fan was interviewed about the Celtics’ chance to be a legitimate contender.

Marsh said:

“No chance – they have too many elite teams with better, and younger star power.”

He also described how the Wizards, Cavaliers had top tier players such as Kyrie Irving and John Wall who will prevent this young, unproven Celtics team from becoming a contender.

Local Celtics fan Kevin Baker was interviewed about how Marcus Smart will pan out.

Baker said:

“I think he will be a very good player, with a wide skill set, and most importantly the passion for the game”.

It seems like lots of Celtics fans around the country have high hopes for players such as Marcus Smart. However, the Celtics also have a various amount of first and second round picks from teams such as the Grizzlies, Nets, and Mavericks. These picks can be used as assets to potentially acquire a star talent, or they can be used to add young talent.

Fans in and around Massachusetts seem to believe that the Celtics will reprise their role as the 7th seed in the eastern conference.