Boston Celtics guard Avery Bradley tends to return each fall with something new added to his game. So when Bradley's assist totals spiked early in the preseason, the assumption was he spent much of the summer focused on improving his playmaking skills.

Bradley said he worked on his ballhandling and wanted to create more for his teammates, but he said his focus was simply improving his all-around game with a desire for the rest of the league to view him as more than just a defender.

Consider Saturday's game in Charlotte as Bradley's launch of his two-way player tour.

Bradley registered career highs with eight 3-pointers and 11 rebounds as part of a 31-point outburst in the Celtics' 104-98 triumph over the Hornets at the Spectrum Center. Through three games, Bradley is shooting 66.7 percent (12-of-18 overall) beyond the 3-point arc, and he leads the Celtics with 8.7 rebounds per game -- compared to an average of three boards last season.

"That’s what the game is supposed to be about: always wanting to get better, be the best you can be," Bradley said during training camp. "I hold myself to that every single summer, every single year. I’m just trying to improve."

Now in his seventh season, Bradley is easily the longest-tenured member of the Celtics, and he's the only player on the roster who predates fourth-year head coach Brad Stevens. Yet Bradley is still only 25 years old. He's the youngest player in Boston's starting lineup. In fact, despite being drafted 19th overall in 2010, he's only five months older than 2013 draft pick Kelly Olynyk.

Avery Bradley made a career-high eight 3-pointers in the Celtics' victory at Charlotte. Jeremy Brevard/USA TODAY Sports

So maybe it shouldn't come as too much of a surprise that Bradley's game is still evolving. His offensive evolution flies a bit under the radar, especially after Bradley elevated to the NBA All-Defensive first team last season.

Bradley's scoring average climbed to a career-best 15.2 points per game last season. Through two games this season, he's perfect on corner 3-pointers (5 of 5), and he's shooting 53.8 percent (7-of-13) in the area above the break, where the 3-point line becomes an arc.

Bradley has looked exceptionally confident with his 3-point shot this season. The addition of Al Horford to Boston's starting lineup has created more space for Boston players to operate, and Bradley takes advantage when he has a clean look. It's worth noting that Horford has assisted on six of Bradley's 16 assisted field goals this season (double that of the next-closest player).

Bradley also recognizes when to keep the ball moving for a better shot, and that has caused his assist numbers to more than double: 2.1 assists per game last season compared to 4.7 per game through three games.

Bradley also is averaging 21.3 points and 0.7 steals in 36.7 minutes per game this season. Boston's offensive rating is 110.3 when Bradley is on the floor and dips to 106.9 when he's off it.

A common knock on Bradley: he often has big first or third quarters but is otherwise quiet during games. After Bradley erupted for five first-half 3-pointers on Saturday, it was fair to wonder if he'd have a quieter second half. Instead, he more than doubled his first-half output and delivered the game-clinching, 3-point dagger with 50 seconds to play.

If not for a missed free throw in the final minute, Bradley would have tied his career high of 32 points (set on Nov. 3, 2014, against the Dallas Mavericks).

About the only early-season negative for Bradley: his defense hasn't quite been up to his lofty standards. The league's player-tracking data has shown that opponents are shooting 48.6 percent against him, but Boston's defense as a whole has been lackluster so far. While Bradley has admitted it's tough to be impactful at both ends of the court, there's no reason he can't maintain much of his offensive contributions without compromising his defensive standards.

"I know where I want to be, and I’m going to work as hard as I can to get there," Bradley said.