The playoffs are just two weeks away, and we still have no idea who the Boston Celtics really are.
Are they the team that routed the Golden State Warriors by 33 points at Oracle Arena earlier this month? Or are they the team that has lost home games to the Phoenix Suns and New York Knicks?
The truth is, throughout the entirety of the year, they have been somewhere in the middle in terms of consistency, but we know how good the Celtics can be when they are focused and engaged.
It's entirely possible that Boston will flip a switch once April 13 hits and tear through the Eastern Conference on its way to a Finals appearance, 2010 Celtics style.
But it's also possible that the C's simply never figure things out and fizzle out early.
Regardless, here are four things that need to happen for the Celtics to make a deep postseason run.
4. Jaylen Brown Needs to Maintain His Current Level of Play
Jaylen Brown got off to a rough start this season, but he has actually been really good since the calendar flipped to December, and he has been outstanding recently.
In the month of March, Brown is averaging 14.2 points per game while shooting 50 percent from the floor and 42.4 percent from 3-point range. He looks a lot closer to the guy who dominated the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round last year than the guy who looked like an end-of-the-bench player in October and November.
We know how critical Brown's play was throughout the Celtics' playoff run last season, especially with Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward both sidelined at the time. But even with Irving and Hayward back, Brown still needs to maintain this level of play, and at the very least, he needs to keep up this level of efficiency.
It's good to see Brown getting more aggressive, as he was very tentative early on in the year. Now, he is looking for his own shot more often and seems to be a lot more confident in himself around the rim,
3. Aron Baynes Needs to Stay Healthy
Aron Baynes has had very hard injury luck all season long, as he has played in just 47 games this season.
But there is no question that when Baynes is healthy, the Celtics are better.
This season, Baynes has a plus-4.8 net rating, which hardly comes as a surprise given the plus-5.3 net rating he posted a year ago.
Not only is the big Aussie a defensive anchor for Boston, but he creates second-chance opportunities offensively and prevents them on the other end. Baynes is also a gifted passer and can even step outside and knock down the 3, a development we began to really see unfold in last year's playoffs.
Baynes takes a heck of a lot of pressure off Al Horford up front, and the two bigs make for an outstanding defensive tandem.
Brad Stevens went to that starting lineup against the Indiana Pacers on Friday night, and seeing as how that was also the starting frontcourt that led Boston through much of last year's postseason, it could be a sign of things to come.
2. Terry Rozier Needs to Rediscover His 2018 Playoff Form
This season, Terry Rozier has been living in the shadow of Irving, and he has not been all that effective, not even resembling the player who took the NBA by storm last spring.
Obviously, Rozier is in a different situation now, as he is back in a bench role with Kyrie healthy, but the Celtics need him to be a spark plug off the pine rather than a guy who comes into the game and gives up leads.
To put it plainly, Rozier has been brutal for most of this season and has looked lost, not understanding his role and not appearing to have any grasp on what a backup point guard is supposed to do.
When Irving has been out of the lineup, it has been a different story, as Rozier clearly flourishes in a starting role, but someone needs to tell him that it's the same game whether he is starting or coming in with six minutes left in the first quarter.
Now, it's plain to see that Rozier is not one of the Celtics' top options, so he doesn't need to average close to 20 points per game like last postseason, but what he does need to do is come off the bench and spell Kyrie for stretches.
If Rozier can rediscover his 2018 playoff form, Boston is going to be unbelievably dangerous in a couple of weeks.
1. Gordon Hayward Needs to be Gordon Hayward
Let me just put a disclaimer here: I am not saying that Gordon Hayward has to go out and drop 20-25 points a night like he did during his Utah Jazz days, because that probably is not going to happen this year.
What I mean is that he simply needs to be himself and understand that he has the talent and skill set to take over a game when necessary.
Luckily for Boston, Hayward seems to be getting more and more comfortable, and over the last couple of months, he has quietly been pretty darn good.
In March, he is averaging 11.8 points per game while shooting 55.6 percent from the floor, and last month, Hayward registered 11.9 points a night while making 51.2 percent of his shots and 44.4 percent of his triples.
Little by little, Hayward has gotten some spring in his step back, which is coming at a perfect time with the playoffs right around the corner.
Yes, Irving is the Celtics' best scorer, Horford is the best all-around player on the team and Jayson Tatum is the most intriguing young talent, but Hayward is the guy who can take this C's squad to the next level.
As long as Hayward stays confident himself and remains assertive, he can absolutely win a playoff series for Boston.
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