Carsen Edwards

During a season when the Celtics really could have used points off the bench, Edwards missed a nice opportunity as a rookie. Instead, the Purdue product appeared in only 37 of 72 possible games for Boston -- also spending time with the G League Red Claws. Edwards never found his shooting stroke, hitting only 32.8 percent of his attempts. That inaccuracy made it harder for coach Brad Stevens to overlook Edwards' defensive limitations. The 6-foot-1 guard now faces competition from newly signed Jeff Teague and rookie Payton Pritchard, as well as returning two-way player Tremont Waters, for back-up point guard duties. Neither Edwards nor Waters saw anything close to meaningful minutes at the end of last season, and expectations should probably stay low for Edwards in 2020-21.

With Edwards, is Boston looking at Isaiah Thomas 2.0? The diminutive Purdue rookie has a knack for creating his own shot, which was on full display during Summer League, where Edwards averaged 19.4 points from only 23 minutes per game. Clearly, Danny Ainge saw something he liked, quickly signing the second-round pick Edwards to a four-year agreement. Edwards averaged 24.3 points per game during his last season at Purdue while shooting 35 percent from behind the arc. But let's all take a deep breath. Edwards is squarely behind star Kemba Walker and Marcus Smart on the Celtics' point guard depth chart, though Smart will also see time as a wing. The 21-year-old's best-case scenario for 2019-20 is to fill the role Terry Rozier played last year, which would mean a generous 22 minutes per game. That's probably a stretch, especially if fellow rookie Romeo Langford's thumb heals as expected before Oct. 1. Boston views Edwards and Langford as long-term scoring threats with upside. How much of that upside we get to view this season is debatable.