When we’re young and we do poorly on a math test, we start to believe that we’re “bad at math.”
We beat ourselves up, wonder why we’re lagging compared to our peers and internalize comments that seem harmless to others but eat at us inside. As we get older, we go to a lower-level class, continue to struggle and wonder why others are grasping certain concepts so easily.
Then, one year, everything suddenly clicks. We find the perfect sweet spot of an excellent teacher, supportive classmates who are there to help and a type of math that makes sense to us. Our grades start to soar, our SAT scores go up, and we get into our dream college.
OK, wait a minute, this is a lovely concept, but what does this have to do with the Celtics?
For most of his life, Anfernee Simons’ skill set has come with a caveat. Oh, he’s a lights-out scorer, a crafty dribbler and a skilled passer, but … he’s a liability defensively. In other words, he’s an A student in English, Spanish and History, but he struggles mightily in Math.
Eventually, when you hear something enough, you start to believe it yourself. No disrespect to the Portland Trail Blazers, but the reality is, Simons wasn’t placed in an environment to succeed. He didn’t have the proper coaching (teacher), teammates (classmates) or fit (subject) to shine.
It’s like trying to drive a convertible with the top down in the snow. There’s nothing wrong with the car, and it’s quite flashy at top speed, but it needs a new environment and a different season to be at its best.
Now, Simons is proving that he’s more than just a one-trick pony. He’s not going to make an All-Defensive team, and that’s OK, but he’s no longer a liability on that end. When you see everyone else flying around defensively, making the proper reads and playing for one another, you have no choice but to do so yourself.
“I’ve been pretty pleased with myself when it comes to that end of the floor,” Simons told reporters. “And just got to keep building.”
Simons’ superpower will always be his microwave scoring, and there’s nothing wrong with that whatsoever. But now with the Celtics, he’s becoming the most-well-rounded version of himself. He no longer has an Achilles heel.
“Where he’s really been the most consistent is the defensive end,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla told reporters. “The physicality on the defensive end, executing our schemes, executing our coverages … that’s where he’s been at his best.”
Many talented players end up wasting their primes in situations where they’re not equipped to thrive. We often criticize ourselves and wonder why we’re falling short, but so much of our trajectory in life stems from our environment and the people around us.
Simons should feel extremely fortunate that the Celtics came into his life at this exact moment. He’s entering his prime, playing the most complete basketball of his career and blossoming into the catalyst on a contender he knew deep down that he could become.
“He’s a complete ball player,” Payton Pritchard told reporters. “And you guys see it every night.”
Simons’ stats are all down, yet he’s found an ideal balance of doing what he does best while also improving what he used to do worst.
Over his last five games, Simons is averaging 17.8 points and shooting 51 percent from 3-point range. He’s scored in double figures in eight of his last nine and is quietly making a surge for potential Sixth Man of the Year candidacy.
But that’s not what impresses me most. Simons finished December a team-high plus-128, and in his last four games, he’s an NBA-best plus-67. The Celtics are statistically better when Simons is on the floor, and it feels like that’s far from a coincidence.
His improved play is a microcosm for why this team has ascended into one of the best in the NBA. Every player is doing slightly more than they did before, at a slightly higher level, and that collective leap is leading to glorious results.
As much as the Celtics have benefitted Simons, Simons also arrived at an opportune time for the Celtics. With Jayson Tatum out, Boston needed another offensive whiz to fill the void.
Anything can happen, but from my lens, the Celtics should keep Simons as long as possible.
A small but mighty lineup with Pritchard, Anfernee Simons, Derrick White, Jaylen Brown and Tatum would be almost impossible to defend. I want to see what the Celtics look like with Tatum back and this current core around him, and I believe Simons should be part of that equation moving forward.
Simons needed the Celtics, the Celtics needed him, and together they’ve found a perfect harmony.
