Indiana Basketball: Romeo Langford 2020-2021 NBA Season Preview

We have already covered that Romeo Langford is on the mend from his wrist surgery, but whenever he does come back, he will have a new coach in charge of his development.

The Celtics recently hired former Ohio State Buckeye and Celtic, Evan Turner, to be an assistant coach focusing on player development. It is unclear how –or if– this will affect Langford’s development, but it is with noting.

I have also already mentioned that the Celtics need Langford more this season than last season. That is due to the departure of Gordon Hayward, who left for Charlotte after receiving an absolutely massive contract.

Langford has the versatility to play the two or the three, and he will get ample opportunity to fill some minutes backing up Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart whenever he comes back from injury. He will, however, have to compete with rookie Aaron Nesmith, who the team selected in the first round out of Vanderbilt.

Langford may have struggled on offense last season, but his defense was superb and makes some people very optimistic about how he projects. ESPN’s flagship NBA writer, Zach Lowe, and colleague Tim Bontemps had this to say about Langford on Lowe’s podcast:

I trust the NBA opinions of Lowe more than just about anyone else in the media, and it is encouraging to see him take note of Langford. Who would have thought that Langford’s calling card would be his defense?

"Bontemps: “[Langford] was surprising [last year]. He was a top recruit, goes to Indiana, struggles with his shot, was banged-up all year. That’s not the type of guy you expect to come in and play defense. He was surprisingly good, especially for a rookie, on defense last year, and I think he is going to play a good amount of minutes … he can really guard.”"

"Lowe: “I think Langford has a shot … Young players generally get better. That’s what they do … I don’t think it’s crazy to build in your assumptions like, ‘Romeo Langford, when he comes back, is ready for a real role.’”"

At this point, Langford’s goal should be to get healthy and maintain his current trajectory on defense. Hopefully, he can come back, stay healthy, and have his first healthy offseason since enrolling at Indiana. If he can develop his offensive talent, there is a good chance he carves out a nice career for himself in the NBA.

I must also throw out the possibility of Langford getting traded. No one is safe from being traded when they are playing for Danny Ainge. Langford’s name will be in any talks the team may have when inquiring about a veteran player.