While the NBA landscape reels from the fallout of the Atlanta Hawks trading Trae Young, the Memphis Grizzlies potentially moving Ja Morant, and the Charlotte Hornets benching LaMelo Ball, the Boston Celtics stand as a monument to a different, more sustainable team-building philosophy. The common thread linking those three struggling franchises? A core built around high-usage, offensive-minded stars who are significant defensive liabilities. In stark contrast, the Celtics’ championship foundation is constructed on the bedrock principle that has defined the last two decades of title winners: elite, two-way basketball. As other teams scramble to retrofit their rosters, Boston’s unwavering commitment to players who compete on both ends is being validated in real-time.
Philadelphia 76ers v Memphis Grizzlies
The careers of Trae Young, Ja Morant, and LaMelo Ball serve as a cautionary tale about the limits of heliocentric, offense-only stars in the modern NBA.
Trae Young: A historic offensive engine who has perennially ranked among the league’s worst defensive players by impact metrics.
Ja Morant: An electrifying talent whose size and style have limited his defensive impact, making him a target in playoff settings.
LaMelo Ball: A gifted passer and scorer whose inconsistent defensive effort and awareness have hampered team development.
As the article notes, looking at the last 20 years reveals a hard truth: championship teams are almost universally built around players who are “at least very capable defenders.” The rare exceptions (Curry, Nowitzki) were paired with Defensive Player of the Year-caliber anchors (Green, Chandler) to mask their limitations—a luxury the Hawks, Grizzlies, and Hornets failed to provide.
Boston’s front office, led by Brad Stevens, has treated two-way competency as a non-negotiable prerequisite. This is embodied in their star duo:
Jayson Tatum: A top-5 MVP candidate who is equally impactful as a primary scoring option and a versatile, switchable defender capable of guarding 1 through 5.
Jaylen Brown: An All-NBA caliber wing whose explosive scoring is matched by his reputation as one of the league’s premier point-of-attack perimeter defenders.
This philosophy extends throughout the roster. From Derrick White (All-Defensive team) to Jrue Holiday (historically elite), Al Horford (defensive IQ), and even role players like Sam Hauser who hold their own, every Celtic is expected to be a cog in a unified defensive machine. This creates a margin for error that teams reliant on one-way stars simply don’t have.
The Hawks’ return for Trae Young—CJ McCollum and Corey Kispert, with no draft picks—is a stark indicator of the diminished trade value of an offensive star with glaring flaws. Teams are increasingly reluctant to build around or pay a premium for players who compromise their defense. This forces franchises like Atlanta, Memphis, and Charlotte into painful resets, trading their stars for less than hoped and searching for the two-way balance Boston already possesses.
The current turmoil surrounding Trae Young, Ja Morant, and LaMelo Ball isn’t just a series of unrelated events; it’s a league-wide referendum on a failed team-building strategy. The Boston Celtics, by prioritizing complete basketball players over one-dimensional scorers, have insulated themselves from this volatility. They are not just competing for a title this season; they have built a championship-caliber ecosystem designed to contend for years. While others learn the hard way that offense sells tickets but defense wins championships, the Celtics are already living the proof. Their success is a testament to a simple, timeless truth: in the NBA, the right way to build is the two-way.