Boston Celtics 2019-2020 Media Day

[Conroy]

GM Roy: Welcome everyone, it feels good to be back. I know I technically never left, but there was definitely a time when I stepped back and went on auto-pilot and let the franchise slip away. I completely botched what I think would have been a great core with John Wall, Spencer Hawes, and Jared Dudley. But that was the past and this is the present, and we always keep an eye on the future. We had a pretty bad season last year with a few lone bright spots. Tyler Ulis won the Rookie of the Year, KAT continued to improve, and we made a minor midseason trade that brought up a new-age stretch 4 in Bonifaz Wenninger. We dropped back a few spots in the lottery which looking back now I'm almost happy about, but more on that later.

Leading up to the draft, we were in a lot of talks for some trades we as an organization had grown tired of the losing and were looking to finally start to make a push to win some games. By dropping the #6 we felt better about taking Jaylen Brown someone we actually scouted while he was in college and really liked his game. The drawbacks for us we thought was that he was 23 and maybe already reached his potential. But after picking in the top 5 year after year, we were ready for a NBA ready player not someone that needed so much developing. So we took Jaylen Brown who was probably the best shooter and athlete in the draft. A few hours later some of our draft day trade talks paid off and we brought in Damian Lillard in exchange for Jason Fisher, Melvin McCall and the #16 pick. We wish Jason and Melvin well with the Pelicans, but felt like it was time to move on with the wing position so cluttered. We liked the spot we were in having enough cap space to offer 1 max contract, so we kept our ears open for potential trades, but nothing else was concrete enough to pounce on. We had some other late 1st rounders we tried to unsuccessfully sell and took some projects...we'll see how they play out.

RFA came and we signed someone who was basically instantly matched so we shifted focus to UFA. We had a max slot open and threw it at Kyrie and Kanter knowing we had little chance to sign them so our real #1 target was Nikola Vucecic. We really wanted a center and in our opinion he was one of the best options out there. We were thrilled to see we signed our main target to a team friendly contract below the max with a team option we can control in the third year. That tied up most of our cap we tried to steal a player or two in the next round and ended up with reserve PG speedster Trey Burke.

The juices were already flowing throughout the organization we were excited. We had KAT a former #1 pick and promising young player, the reigning ROTY Tyler Ulis, Jaylen Brown a promsing rookie, and now 2 solid veterans. Then TC happened and we are all-in D'Lo is back KAT, Ulis, and Brown all jumped a current color rating. We know the East is stacked but we are ready to compete...any questions?

[garbageman]

When do you expect a return to the playoffs for the Boston Celtics?

[NOLa.]

How was Ulis so efficient for a rookie who came in looking as if he would be lucky to average 40% from the field as a rookie?

[Wombataholic]

With good players at the 2-5, are there plans to flip one of your extra small forwards for a more serviceable PG?

[JNR]

GWR: Jaylen Brown looks like he's ready to contribute now. Is he the early favorite for ROY?

[ballsohard]

Can you talk about the east and little and have you ever seen a conference so competitive ?

[Conroy]

When do you expect a return to the playoffs for the Boston Celtics?

The goal is this year, I realize that’s being optimistic, but regardless it’s still the goal and we expect to be competitive and fighting for one of those coveted playoff berths in the East.

[Conroy]

How was Ulis so efficient for a rookie who came in looking as if he would be lucky to average 40% from the field as a rookie?

I personally think it was a combination of things. He may be pretty raw in terms of a skill set but he had 2 things going for him. He is extremely athletic and can get to the rim. And to help things he’s an excellent free throw shooter.

[NickMalone77]

Does the acquisition of Damian Lillard drastically reduce the role of DeAngelo Russell or Isiah Stumpf?

[IamQuailman]

Vucevic signing may be the most underrated signing of UFA. How excited are you to have him on your squad next to KAT?

[Conroy]

With good players at the 2-5, are there plans to flip one of your extra small forwards for a more serviceable PG?

We are always open to making moves, but as an organization we really really like the guys on our roster. We will probably take a few unconventional approaches to the PG position. Ulis was productive at the position last year, but obviously lacks the HND/PAS...Dame Lillard does seem to be a better fit at SG, but definitely has the skills the run the point. And newly drafted Jaylen Brown has the third highest handle rating on the team so he may get some chances to run the offense at times.

[Conroy]

GWR: Jaylen Brown looks like he's ready to contribute now. Is he the early favorite for ROY?

He is for me, and I won't shy away from it. It's a goal of ours this season, it was great last season watching Ulis play so well and really reinvigorated the front office, the fans, and the locker room. I think Jaylen can come in this year and really help the team were we struggled most last season...3 pt shooting. Something I didn't touch on in the initial statement was that acquiring 3 pt shooting was a point of emphasis. It started with bringing in Bonifaz at the trade deadline (83 3pt rating), then acquiring Dame Lillard on draft day (91 3pt rating), and drafting Jaylen (87 3pt rating). Before bringing those 3 players in our highest rated 3 point shooter was Ulis at 68.

[Conroy]

Can you talk about the east and little and have you ever seen a conference so competitive ?

I can't remember the East ever being this competitive...I'm sure some Western conference teams would argue the West was this good at times. But we had a 45 win team last year miss the playoffs. The East has IMO one of the best players in the history of SLOE in AD with the Pistons 3 of the most complete teams in the league (76ers, Hawks, & Bobcats) then a slew of talented teams who will be trying to carve their own path. So those 4 teams pretty much lock up the top 4 spots, leaving 4 more up for grabs and probably 6-7 teams vying for a shot at the post season.

[Conroy]

Does the acquisition of Damian Lillard drastically reduce the role of DeAngelo Russell or Isiah Stumpf?

I can't emphasize enough how pleased we are with D'Angelo Russell. We shipped out McCall and Fisher and put our faith in D'Lo. We actually received plenty of fair offers for him in the offseason, but we knew the player we scouted in the draft 2 years ago was still there. And he proved us right this past TC making huge gains and showing the potential again he once had. Dame will obviously start, but when we experiment with him at PG I expect D'Lo to start at SG, and bring Ulis off the bench to terrorize 2nd units. Stumpf will get his opportunities too, he is a very underrated player in our opinion, and when Russell is starting he'll be the first wing off the bench.

[Conroy]

Vucevic signing may be the most underrated signing of UFA. How excited are you to have him on your squad next to KAT?

Very excited, we always knew KAT was too short to play Center but too slow to play PF. But due to roster limitations and KAT still being slow he bounced back and forth from PF and C. Now we have a legit 7 footer to anchor the Center position and KAT's training have him at least at a respectable level of Quickness. Vucevic does everything you'd want a Center to do...rebounds, scores inside, defends. He was our #1 target, and again to get him on a 3 year deal through the prime of his career at less than the max. It really topped off a fantastic offseason for us. We went from 0 players with blue current to now 3. And they were all at a serious position of need.

[WigNosy]

You have two backup PFs with very different styles in Bonifaz Wenninger and Chris Arruda. Which one is likely to fit better in your rotation?

[digiskunk]

Your team spent the past few seasons rebuilding, but now you're looking better than ever. How ready are you to contend? Do you think you have what it takes to win it all? And if not, what do you feel is holding you back?

Another question! The acquisition of Damian Lillard was huge for you. What do you predict his upcoming season will look like from a statistical perspective?

[Soundwave]

Have you bought and cold water clothing?

Winter is coming.