In Marcus Smart’s return to TD Garden, Jordan Walsh earned his first career points, slamming them home in style on a two-handed jam during the Celtics’ 131-91 win vs. the Memphis GrizzliesBut as a six-foot-seven forward who’s light on his feet and has a seven-foot-three wingspan, what he brings to the table defensively, where he has the potential to wreak havoc, is his ticket to playing time in Boston.
After a 117-98 win over the San Antonio Spurs in late January, Joe Mazzulla conveyed, “He got Defensive Player of the Game in Maine, and that was the proudest I was of him because it’s important when you go from college, and come to the NBA that sometimes you have to do things that you’re not used to and asked to do things that you’re uncomfortable doing, and you have to trust that.”
The Celtics’ bench boss continued, “You look at the box score and see that he only had five shot attempts but guarded the best player the entire game and had nine rebounds and six assists. For our organization, that’s kind of what success and greatness looks like most of the time.”
Walsh, making his NBA debut that night, grabbed four rebounds in 3:03, a feat that impressed Jaylen Brown.
“The rook has just been working, man,” expressed the three-time All-Star after the win against victor Wembanyama and Co. “Just getting better, developing. Obviously, (he’s) been down in Maine, but you (have) been hearing good things. So, just seeing him get out there, and right away, show some signs of improvement, like just get out there and grab four rebounds, you can see he got some talent, and he’s just working
When playing in the G League, the former Arkansas Razorback has done a commendable job of focusing on the role that he’ll have with the parent club, sprinting to the corners and often operating off of the ball rather than wasting time trying to be a high-volume isolation scorer.
From players up and down the roster to Mazzulla and front office members, Walsh has received praise for his work ethic, discipline, defensive instincts, and ability to learn and quickly apply information. Those tools are invaluable to his development.
And while his first chance at legitimate rotation minutes, starting when he subbed in with 2:16 left in the first frame of Boston’s 136-86 shellacking of the Brooklyn Nets in its last game before the All-Star break didn’t go as smoothly as he hoped, including picking up a foul five seconds after checking in, he registered a rejection, a steal, five rebounds, was active defensively and set effective screens, including one paving the way for Derrick White to knock down an open pull-up jump shot.
