Yahoo Sports senior NBA reporter Vincent Goodwill is joined by Gary Washburn from The Boston Globe to talk about the Celtics and LeBron James’ longevity.

00:00 - Gary Washburn joins the Good Word

06:50 - Aaron Gordon bitten by a dog

09:55 - Boston Celtics

12:10 - Why the Celtics had to trade Marcus Smart

14:55 - The ascension of Derrick White

17:30 - Locker room leadership

22:05 - Joe Mazzulla

30:35 - Jayson Tatum & Jaylen Brown

41:40 - LeBron James turns 39

On this episode of the Good Word with Goodwill podcast, Vincent Goodwill is joined by Gary Washburn from The Boston Globe to discuss all things Boston Celtics.

First, the guys discuss the very odd story of Aaron Gordon being out indefinitely after suffering cuts and lacerations as a result of a Christmas Day dog bite.

The Celtics made a lot of big changes over the offseason, moving on from some longtime role players (Grant & Robert Williams, Marcus Smart, Malcom Brogdon) and moving Al Horford from the starting lineup to the bench while adding Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday. Gary tells us why the team makes more sense now, and why Marcus Smart needed to be traded to make room for Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.

Derrick White has been playing at an all-star level this year, something that Gary says wouldn’t have been possible two years ago because of a lack of confidence. White making a solid two-way backcourt with Jrue Holiday has really freed up Tatum and Brown to do more, on and off the court.

Speaking of, Gary explains that Tatum and Brown are very different people with very different interests and stresses that it’s okay if the two best players on this team aren’t best friends. It doesn’t mean they have an issue with each other and it definitely doesn’t mean they need to be split up.

Vince and Gary agree that the Celtics occasionally fall in love with the 3-point shot to their detriment, and Gary explains how this has affected his relationship with Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla.

Finally, with LeBron James’ 39th birthday coming up this weekend, the guys try to think of other players that have been this good at this age. 

Check out the rest of the Yahoo Sports podcast family at https://apple.co/3zEuTQj or at Yahoo Sports Podcasts

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.