The Last Cuts
As the Celtics season is set to debut Wednesday, October 26 against the Brooklyn Nets, they intend to trim the current 16 man roster that stands today. Earlier this afternoon, R.J Hunter was waived from the Celtic Roster.
“There’s no really reason why we waived R.J other than we had 16 bodies and that position is probably needed less than the other positions…” said Danny Ainge on the recent move.
R.J Hunter was the 28th pick of the first round in the 2015 NBA draft out of Georgia State University. The Celtics took him early in hopes to have him as part of the rebuild to patch up the shooting woes they’ve had since the departure of the BIG 3.
Although Hunter was the sharp shooter we were looking for, his all around game hasn’t been developed enough to contribute in real league minutes. He was primarily used in “garbage” time or short benched games.
“…I will say that James [Young], Jordan [Mickey], and Demetrius [Jackson]…Terry Rozier, all had fantastic training camps,” Ainge continued to say.
Out of the four in competition for the last few roster spots, R.J was the least of my worries to make it. Only one player in the pack really distanced themselves from the others, and that is Terry Rozier. R.J has a shooting gift that you cannot teach. James Young and Jordan Mickey were two players who haven’t been able to elevate their game to NBA standards yet, and Demetrius Jackson is slowly showing his potential, however a 4th point guard on the roster isn’t necessary, when in need of sharp shooting.
Rivals in the league understood the Celtics having an overstocked roster with the deadline approaching. This made it difficult for Boston to make a trade, therefore they just moved on from R.J.
It will be quite interesting to see where he will land next. Just from seeing sparks of his potential, I am confident that he can find a home where his style of play can flourish with a system that caters to running and gunning (small ball).
Ben Bentil, the recent 2nd rounder was let go prior to Hunter, and just today, he found a home in Indiana with the Pacers. Bentil never really got to showcase his talent to the world. Pacers have certainly been the biggest opportunist in the league this summer acquiring players at just about every position.
Only two rookies will remain on the roster going into opening night. They are both Jaylen Brown and Demetrius Jackson. The other two rookies drafter will be stashed overseas
Jaylen Brown, being the 3rd overall pick in the draft, will most likely be the only rookie carrying a bulk of workload. Expect Rozier to play a significant role in his 2nd season. Stay tuned!
