BOSTON – As someone who has always admired the Boston Celtics and their perennial success from afar, Xavier Tillman feels like he’s died and gone to heaven after being acquired by the C’s Wednesday ahead of the trade deadline.
Tillman, who was dealt from Memphis in exchange for a future second-round draft pick, joined the Celtics Friday morning for his first shootaround in Boston and expressed to reporters how excited he is to be in green.
“It’s crazy, to be honest with you,” said the 6-foot-7 center/power forward ahead of Boston's matchup with the Washington Wizards. “I’ve always watched the Celtics in terms of just the winning history of it, back with KG (Kevin Garnett) and all that stuff, and seeing these guys repeatedly go to the Eastern Conference Finals all the time; I’m always locked in on that. So for me to get the opportunity to be part of a winning organization, it’s pretty awesome.”
Tillman learned a bit more about the Boston experience through his former Memphis teammate, Marcus Smart. He also saw how much love the fans gave Smart Sunday night when the longtime Celtic made his first return to TD Garden with the Grizzlies.
“He was just telling me about his experience,” Tillman relayed. “I haven't talked to him since I've been traded, but the main thing he told me is it's very similar to Memphis in terms of the grit and the grind and how hard you have to work for the fans and appreciation and stuff like that. And once you do show that you're willing to hustle, they're gonna love you. I love that.”
Tillman played in 34 games, including 13 starts, for the Grizzlies this season, posting averages of 6.0 points, 4.6 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1.2 steals, and 1.0 blocks per game.
The 25-year-old big man isn’t quite ready to step out onto the court just yet, as he’s recovering from a minor knee injury, but he doesn’t anticipate being out long.In the meantime, he’s getting to know Boston’s system in and out, so that he’ll be ready to hit the ground running once he’s fully healthy.
Tillman’s main strength is his defensive versatility, and he was able to start envisioning his fit and potential impact on that fit through Friday’s film session.
“Coming out of the film session, that’s something that I was learning about, the nuances of how they like to operate (defensively) and stuff like that. It’ll take a little bit, but I don’t think it’ll be too long or too hard for me to get adjusted to it, for sure.”
Brad Stevens also touched on the addition Friday morning, noting how Tillman had been on the team’s radar for a while.
“We've always liked Xavier,” said the C’s president of basketball operations. “Obviously he’s big and strong, moves his feet well laterally, so he’s been able to guard a number of people and a number of different positions well. Above that, he plays the game for the right reasons, right? He competes, he passes, thinks the game well – all the stuff that we've been fortunate with the guys we have around our best players that they bring to the table. He knows how to play. So we're excited to have him.”