Does Boston Celtics rookie Carsen Edwards have an NBA future?

Does Boston Celtics rookie sharpshooter Carsen Edwards have a future in the NBA after a rocky start to his inaugural season?

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With seven rookies joining the team in the 2019-20, competition for playing time was always going to be hard for sharpshooting guard Carsen Edwards.

And when the Purdue product struggled to connect at the next level — as is often the case for first-year players adjusting to the speed of the NBA game —  and when he was sent to the team’s G League developmental affiliate (the Maine Red Claws), things didn’t get too much better from 3-point range.

Should Edwards be worried about his future in the league?

Probably not — at least not yet. But with roster spots now looking to be at a premium in the coming season, the Texan guard probably wants to work as hard on his game as he has in his career in the short- and medium- term.

This is the conclusion Jesse Cinquini of the Playgrounder comes to as well when assessing Edward’s future in the NBA.

“Perimeter woes plagued the 22-year-old throughout his 35 games as a Celtic, too,” observes Cinquini.

“He sits at a lowly fifth percentile among combo guards in points per shot attempt, according to Cleaning the Glass. To boot, Carsen managed to shoot just 32.7 # from the field and 30.9 percent from deep as a pro. Not exactly numbers that scream NBA-ready.”

Noting that Edwards is taking a high number of ill-advised shots early in the clock, as well as heavily-guarded shots that won’t work against the superior length, strength, athleticism and skill in the NBA, Cinquini argues that Edwards still needs to work on his shot selection.

He did have a solid stretch at the G League level with the Red Claws, especially with the midrange, a shot finding new currency against some teams that put little effort into guarding the usually-inefficient shot.

Cinquini makes the case that the young guard must adapt to a smaller role with more optimised offense reflecting his new situation; he also believes it’s within his reach to achieve that.

At the Celtics Wire, we concur.

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