The Boston Celtics made some adjustments to their roster this offseason that still has many fans feeling indifferent about the changes made to the team this summer.

Trading away the longest tenured player and heart and soul of the team in Marcus Smart was a shock to everyone.

The Celtics tried to get the deal done through Malcolm Brogdon but the trade fell through due to the Clippers not having enough time to do their due diligence on the player.

The C’s acquired Kristaps Porzingis to join the best duo in the NBA of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, Boston’s franchise pillars and ascending superstars in the league. 

Boston then turned around and traded away Grant Williams to the Mavericks in a three-team deal that landed them three future second round draft picks in 2024, 2025, and 2030. 

The two moves Boston made this offseason ended up resulting in trading away the two best defenders they had on their roster. But the Celtics should still be a top defending team this season led by starting point guard and All-NBA defender Derrick White.

In addition to Porzingis, free agent signings Oshae Brissett and Dalano Banton add size and flexibility to the roster on both ends of the court. And rookie second round pick Jordan Walsh is advertised as a defensive standout.

It’s worth mentioning that Al Horford defended the most field goals on the team last season with 1,017 which ranked 28th in the NBA. But Horford will be 37-years-old this year and can’t expect to have the same workload that he’s given Boston over the last few years.

This is also the first healthy offseason that Robert Williams has arguably had in his entire career so he should be expected to take back some of the workload he’s missed over the last few years.

Here’s my projected starting lineup for the Celtics:

PG: Derrick White

SG: Jaylen Brown

SF: Jayson Tatum

PF: Kristaps Porzingis

C: Robert Williams

It’ll be interesting to see how the big man rotation flows this season as Rob, Horford, and Porzingis are all going to have to be managed in some capacity while keeping in mind that Horford isn’t too much of a true center anymore.

Perhaps that’ll open the door for Luke Kornet during the early part of the season, who’s currently on a non-guaranteed deal through January.

I think the pairing of Brogdon and Horford coming off the bench can be a good thing for this team to have on the floor with the second unit, specifically Sam Hauser who needs Brogdon to be his setup guy for him to let it fly.

Payton Pritchard will see more minutes and opportunities this season as the sharpshooting backup guard role he’s carved for himself in Boston.

The additions of Brissett and Banton are still intriguing to me. While I’m high on Brissett filling a needed role as a high-energy two-way player, I’m unsure where Banton fits in as the fourth point guard on the roster.

With Banton’s size (6-foot-9), he might get more opportunities from the wing position in Boston, adding depth being Tatum and Brown.

It’s worth mentioning that Walsh was given a standard contract so that the Celtics can use him in the playoffs without having to worry about tweaking the roster to add him later in the season. I think the Celtics are expecting him to gain real NBA experience throughout the season to amp him up for the playoffs.

Boston also signed free agent Svi Mykhailiuk to a one-year deal. He’s an elite shooter with 40/36/76 career splits and will compete for minutes with Hauser, who’s also a great shooter, so it will come down to who can play better defense.

Here’s my projected secondary lineup for the Celtics:

PG: Malcolm Brogdon

SG: Payton Pritchard

SF: Sam Hauser

PF: Oshae Brissett, Jordan Walsh

C: Al Horford, Luke Kornet

The two things that I think are key to Boston’s success this season are the health of the big man position and the overall lineups and rotations.

Head coach Joe Mazzulla has a new-and-improved team from the roster to the coaching staff that will guide him in making the best decisions for the team.

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Photo Credit: Jim Davis, Globe Staff