Brad Stevens: Evan Turner Has To Play

Evan Turner is going to get his minutes, one way or another… because Brad Stevens wants him to.

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To say Evan Turner disappointed with the Indiana Pacers last season would be an understatement. After trading Danny Granger for Turner, the Pacers imploded offensively after having the NBA’s best record early on in the season.

Correlation doesn’t necessarily imply causation, but Turner is on the Boston Celtics now. While no NBA fan would want their team to rely on Turner, it seems Celtics fans will be seeing quite a bit of him this season, according to the Boston Globe.

Head coach Brad Stevens already said he plans on using Jeff Green at both power forward and small forward in order to make sure Turner gets some minutes.

While it seems unlikely Turner would start–with Green, Jared Sullinger and Kelly Olynyk rounding out 3 through 5–he could potentially start at shooting guard if Stevens moves Avery Bradley to point guard with Rajon Rondo injured (assuming he doesn’t think Marcus Smart is ready to start). But that’s a lot of things that have to break for him to start.

Starting and coming off the bench, though, isn’t as important as general playing time. Turner was ineffective in Indiana and though he played well for the Philadelphia 76ers at times, he was just one of a few legitimate NBA players on that roster.

The Celtics aren’t far and away further along in the rebuilding process than the 76ers, but they shouldn’t have to rely on Turner if he plays like he did last season.

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