BOSTON – Rather than putting their feet up between Games 2 and 3 of the G League Finals, Celtics players JD Davison, Drew Peterson, Neemias Queta, and Jordan Walsh decided that they wanted to get some extra reps at the NBA level.
Not even 20 hours after completing the middle game of the best-of-three championship round, those four made their way from Oklahoma City to Boston and stepped in against the Charlotte Hornets to combine for 39 points in a 131-98 Celtics win.
“I think it’s about building habits, good habits, winning habits,” Queta said after a 16-point, six-rebound, five-assist, two-steal effort. “Being able to come out on the floor and play meaningful minutes on the NBA court is something we value a lot and it’s gonna be important for our development long-term. So the more minutes we can play and be able to contribute to winning, the more happy we can be.”
Walsh was happy to contribute by knocking down the first two 3-pointers of his NBA career. He finished with eight points while shooting 3-of-4 from the field and 2-of-3 from long range, which was identical to the stat line posted by Peterson. Davison chipped in with seven points and was second on the team in assists with seven, trailing only Payton Pritchard’s 11-assist night.
Pritchard, who also scored a career-high 31 points, was impressed with the play of those guys coming off the bench, noting how much they seem to improve each time they come back to Boston.
“It just shows why they're in the championship in the G League,” Pritchard said. “Jordan, JD, Neemi, Drew, they are tremendous players getting better every time I see them.”
There was even a stretch toward the end of the game during which all four of them were on the court together, just as they were playing together in Maine. The chemistry was evident among them, as they closed the game on an 11-2 run.
“I feel like the game comes easier for us,” Queta said, “because we build our chemistry [in Maine] and understand a little bit of each other's dynamics where to be at, what guys like to do … The more we play with each other, we're starting to build a bit more. And these moments are really important for the development of our group. The more we can be able to come in there and play as hard as we can and take these minutes as meaningful reps, I feel like it's only gonna help the team long-term.”
The game also seemed to come easy for that group from a systematic standpoint, to which head coach Joe Mazzulla credits the alignment between both the Maine and Boston teams.
“I think it’s just a testament to the coaching staff, the front office, the players, and it shows the continuity amongst the organization, which is kind of what we’re looking for,” said Mazzulla. “So those guys have played really well any time they’ve come up for us, and they are doing a heck of a job [up] there.”
The job that they’ve done has put them within one win of capturing a G League championship. Getting these final competitive reps in before Monday night’s title game, hopefully, will help put them over the top.