Two Celtics named to NBA All-Defense teams

The Boston Celtics were, by most metrics, one of the best defensive teams in the NBA during the 2023-2024 regular season. On points alone they ranked fifth, allowing 109.2 points per game. In the playoffs they've allowed 96.7 points per game, which is the fewest among all teams to make it beyond the first round.

That kind of defense doesn't come without some terrific individual defensive players. Now, two Celtics are getting recognized in that regard on the NBA All-Defense teams.

Voting for the 2023-2024 NBA All-Defense teams was revealed on Tuesday, which landed guards Derrick White and Jrue Holiday on the NBA All-Defense second team. However, with NBA All-Defense teams not done by position anymore, the first-team was made up entirely of wings and centers, making White and Holiday among the top vote-getters at the guard position.

In addition to White and Holiday, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown also received all-defense votes.

For White, this is his second year in a row being named to the NBA All-Defense second team and the second time overall in seven NBA seasons. This year the 29-year-old posted career highs in blocks (87) and steals (74) in 73 games.

This is the sixth time in Holiday's 15-year NBA career he's been named to an All-Defense team. He was first-team in 2018, 2021, and 2023 and then second team in 2019, 2022, and now 2024. Holiday, 33, finished the regular season with 61 steals and 53 blocks in 69 games.

The last time the Celtics had multiple All-Defense players was during the 2021-2022 season. That year Marcus Smart was named All-Defense first-team, while Robert Williams was on the second team. The last time two Celtics were both second-team All-Defense was the 2011-2012 season - Rajon Rondo and Kevin Garnett.

With their All-NBA Defense backcourt, the Celtics get ready to take on the high-scoring Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals, beginning with Game 1 on Tuesday night. This will be a real test for the Celtics' defense - the Pacers led the NBA scoring 123.3 points per game this season.

Keep scrolling for more on the Eastern Conference Finals...

Pacers vs. Celtics…. No, it doesn’t have the juice that Knicks vs. Celtics would have had. But this will absolutely be the Celtics toughest test of the postseason so far. And likely a lot tougher than a matchup against the banged-up Knicks would have been. As we get ready for Game 1 on Tuesday night let’s take a look at the five players that will play the biggest roles in determining this series. 

1. Derrick White 

You aren’t going to find a bigger Derrick White fan than me. Brad Stevens has put together a longggg list of impressive moves during his time as the president of basketball operations for the Celtics. Still, turning Josh Richardson, Romeo Langford, and picks into White back in 2022 might remain his best move. He was arguably the Celtics best player in their opening round series against the Heat and after three consecutive poor shooting games against the Cavs, White finished that series with a strong 18-point performance in Game 5. If White can continue to give you the type of play he did in round 1 and in Game 5, this series won’t last long. 

2. Pascal Siakam 

The Pacers acquired Siakam at the deadline from the Raptors in exchange for Bruce Brown, Jordan Nwora and three first round picks. So far this postseason the trade has worked out. In 12 playoff games he is averaging more than 21 points per game while shooting better than 50% from the field. That is NOT what Siakam brought to the table the last time he played the Celtics in the playoffs.

During the bubble postseason the Raptors and Celtics went 7 games in the Eastern Conference semifinals, in that series Siakam saw his averages plummet from 23.6 points per game on 45.9% shooting during the regular season to 14.9 points on 38.2% shooting. For his career against the Celtics he has averaged 17.6 points in 25 games (his biggest game a 40 point performance against the Celtics in 2022 came against a Celtics lineup that did not have Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, or Al Horford).

The question is which Siakam are the Pacers going to get this series. The one they have gotten so far this postseason or the one that showed up in the bubble against Boston. If it’s bubble Siakam this series will get ugly. 

I’ll come clean and admit that I was a way bigger fan of the In-Season Tournament than any rational person should have been. Sure, it was artificially created by the league but it also gave players an incentive to really care about games that weren’t actually playoff games. And it worked! Players did really care!

I was especially excited for the Celtics to have an opportunity at a dress rehearsal for the playoffs. Some actual reps with this new group in games that meant a little bit more! Unfortunately, those reps came to a premature end against the Pacers thanks to a fantastic performance from Haliburton in which he had 26 points, 10 rebounds, and 13 assists. He was the best player on the court that night. And while Siakam is a two-time all-star, I’m confident in saying that Haliburton is the one player the Pacers have that has the ability to take over games against Boston. If the Celtics can keep Haliburton in check the rest will take care of itself.

Yes, I am cheating a little bit with this one but stay with me. The latest update we received on Porzingis over the weekend is certainly encouraging if you are Celtis fan. According to Woj, “Porzingis is expected to remain sidelined for Games 1 and 2 of the Eastern Conference finals next week, but there is optimism he will be able to return sometime in the series barring any setbacks.” I still don’t think the Celtics are at a point in the playoffs where they need Porzingis to win the series (I said the day after the injury took place that the only team they will need him until the finals and I haven’t wavered on that take). That being said the injury took place on April 29^th, Game 3 of this series is May 25^th, that is nearly a month off for a legit seven-footer.

Getting Porzingis up and running, back in game shape, and confident again before the Finals actually begin is vitally important. There will not be a lot of wiggle room in the Finals. Making sure the rust is knocked off and Porzingis is healthy and productive is one of the biggest goals for Boston in this series.

He is the best player on the best team. Enough said.