The early returns on the trade that sent guard Anfernee Simons to the Chicago Bulls for new Boston Celtics big man Nikola Vucevic has been mixed so far. The Montenegrin center has helped Boston boost its rebounding, and has shown flashes of being a good passer able to add new dimensions to the Celtics offense, as well as his shot from beyond the arc giving the team the option to run five-out lineups.
But the knocks against his defense are legit, with the former Bulls big clearly a bit slow when it comes to foot speed or closing out on opponents squaring up for a shot from 3-point range. All that said, the deal still has some major fans, including the eponymous host of the “Hoops Tonight with Jason Timpf” podcast, who took some time to urge patience for the Boston faithful with the trade.
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Take a look at the clip embedded below to hear what he had to say about what he has seen in the move to date, and why he thinks the fit is only going to get better.
Listen to “Havlicek Stole the Pod” on:
Blue Wire: https://tiny.ee/CdKp
iTunes: https://tiny.ee/RK47
YouTube: https://tiny.ee/cOW3
This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Why the Celtics trading for Nikola Vucevic will pay off