One of the biggest reasons people didn’t believe in the Celtics coming into the season was because of their centers and how little they had proven entering the season. As the season went on, it became clear that Neemias Queta is a quality starting center and that Luka Garza and trade deadline addition Nikola Vucevic were good enough depth.
However, as the playoffs started, we knew the center position was where the Celtics were going to be tested the most.
Yet through Boston’s first four playoff games, we don’t really know how Joe Mazzulla and the rest of the Celtics coaches want to deploy their centers.
So far in the postseason, Neemias Queta has started all 4 games and played 73 minutes, Nikola Vucevic has played the most minutes with 85 and Luka Garza has played the least with 31 minutes played.
It is clear that Garza is the third big and although he’s the third option, he has already played a lot more than I thought he would early in the series.
A lot of Garza’s minutes have to do with the fact that Neemias Queta just cannot stay out of foul trouble. In 3 of 4 games, Queta has picked up two quick fouls and needed to hit the bench quickly.
The Celtics need Neemias Queta to stay out of foul trouble, which has been a problem for much of the first round. Queta picked up 5 fouls in Game 1 and 4 fouls in both games in Philadelphia.
It is the fouls 94 feet away from the basket that Queta cannot pick up.
— #LetsGoCeltics (@gobosceltics) April 27, 2026
That has lead to an increase in the use of Nikola Vucevic, who gives the Celtics a different look than Queta does.
I have been pleased with the way Big Vooch has played in this series. The Celtics really needed him to pull out the Game 3 win with his 11 points and 6 rebounds off of the bench.
His defense leaves a lot to be desired. Late in Game 3, the Sixers ran the Paul George-Andre Drummond pick and roll a lot to get Vucevic in the action and it led to good results for the Sixers.
— #LetsGoCeltics (@gobosceltics) April 27, 2026
— #LetsGoCeltics (@gobosceltics) April 27, 2026
That is a concern, which will led to the Luka Garza playing time. While I like Garza and think he has been solid in this series, his pick and roll defense also leaves a lot to be desired.
Vucevic being the backup center makes sense — he is a more skilled offensive player than Garza is and neither guy is going to guard a ton.
I do think that Queta is Boston’s best option at center and as the rounds go on, he will be the guy that the Celtics close games with. His rim protection, ability to move his feet enough on the perimeter, offensive rebounding and the threat of the lob are all so valuable to what the Celtics want to do.
With apologies to 4th string center Amari Williams, Queta as the starter (and closer), Vucevic as the backup and Garza filling in when needed is how I would divvy up the minutes.
It is notable that Mazzulla went with Vucevic at the end of a close Game 3. In the 4th quarter of that game, Vucevic played 11:35 while Queta (and Garza) didn’t play at all. I don’t think that will be the case as the playoffs go on but the precedent is there so we will see if that happens again as the playoffs wear on.
