Which member of the Boston Celtics is most likely to elevate the ceiling of the team based on their play during the 2026-27 season?<\/p>\n
In the latest installment of our Ramp to Camp series, we asked our panel to predict the one player \u2014 not named Jayson Tatum \u2014 who might emerge as the biggest X-factor in Boston\u2019s overall success this season.<\/p>\n
The way we look at it: Tatum sets a high floor for Boston\u2019s season based on his MVP potential, but the complementary pieces around him might ultimately determine Boston\u2019s ceiling.<\/p>\n
So who is capable of pushing that ceiling the highest?<\/p>\n
Our panel landed on three different choices and we could certainly make an argument for each of them. Derrick White is vital to winning basketball and finding his shot would undeniably aid Boston\u2019s chances of success. If Hugo Gonzalez or any of the team\u2019s stable of young wings have a breakout season it would help fill the obvious void left by Jaylen Brown\u2019s departure. And we are quite bullish on the Neemias Queta\/Mitchell Robinson pairing and the energy that duo can bring at a souped-up center position.<\/p>\n
But our choice for Boston\u2019s 2026-27 X-factor is Paul George.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s been well established throughout this series that it\u2019s unfair to suggest that George, at age 36, is a 1-for-1 replacement for Brown\u2019s production. Brown is coming off a top-6 finish in MVP voting in his age 29 season. They are two different players and Boston is banking, in part, that George\u2019s skillset might better complement Tatum at this stage of their careers.<\/p>\n
If the Celtics are able to keep George upright for 50-plus games, and if George\u2019s postseason play resembles anything close to what we saw against the Celtics in Round 1 of the playoffs in April, then Boston will outkick outsider expectations.<\/p>\n
If George can\u2019t stay healthy and struggles to maintain his impact at an advanced age, it narrows the margin for error throughout the roster. Tatum has to be Superman, even as he\u2019s still working his way back to full health, all while White and Pritchard have to find even more consistency with their offensive output.<\/p>\n
George averaged 17.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.7 steals over 30.7 minutes per game last season. A Philadelphia team with a negative net rating for the regular season was +3.6 points per 100 possessions with George on the court.<\/p>\n
George can play off the ball and punish opponents as a 3-point threat if teams put too much attention on Tatum.\u00a0 His turnover percentage was basically a career low last season, and he averaged 10.2 potential assists per 100 possessions, including 2.7 rim assists per 100 (a mark that ranked in the 88th percentile for his position). He can still cause havoc on the defensive end and generate a bunch of turnovers with his length.<\/p>\n
Invariably, the conversation comes back to health. If George is Boston\u2019s X-factor, then they are leaning heavy on a player that has played north of 56 games just once in the past seven seasons. He totaled 78 regular-season games in two seasons with Philadelphia, including 37 a year ago.<\/p>\n
But listen to George gush about how he feels entering the 2026-27 season and you can convince yourself quickly that he can still raise this team\u2019s ceiling with his play. There\u2019s nothing left for him to accomplish, individually, at this stage of his career, even if he is playing for maybe one more contract.<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPaul George discusses his role on the Boston Celtics this season during his introductory press conference with the team.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
We asked George what motivates him now at age 36.<\/p>\n
“That I’ve never won a championship,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd, as you get older, you look back on the years, and obviously two years in Philadelphia \u2014 not wasted in terms of the team not having a chance but just physically not being able to give everything I have because of my body. And so to be on the other end of that now, that’s what I’m gunning for.<\/p>\n
“And [a title is] the only thing on my mind. I\u2019ve learned how to be the 1 guy, I’ve learned how to play off guys. You learn all of these things in your career and I think now it’s time to put it all on the table and give everything you have to try to be the last team standing.\u201d<\/p>\n
If the Celtics want to be the last team standing, George is the X-factor, and they need to keep him standing.<\/p>\n
Josh Canu: Editor<\/p>\n
Hugo Gonzalez. The hype continues to grow with Gonzalez and understandably so. He plays Celtics basketball the way Joe Mazzulla wants it to be played — with effort, hustle, defense, and passion. If the Celtics overachieve this season it will be because Gonzalez took a massive leap. I expect guys like Payton Pritchard, Baylor Scheierman, and Sam Hauser to step up as well, but Gonzalez has the best chance to be the X-factor that could vault the Celtics up the standings.<\/p>\n
Justin Leger<\/a>: Producer, Multi-Platform Content<\/p>\n The obvious answer is Derrick White. The Celtics reach a whole new level of dangerous when his shots are falling. However, I’m going to go in a different direction here and say Mitchell Robinson is the biggest X-factor. Boston’s lack of frontcourt depth was glaring in its first-round playoff loss to Philly. Is Robinson the answer?<\/p>\n