Torrey Craig details “no-brainer” decision to join the Celtics

NEW YORK CITY — Torrey Craig sat in the bleachers of Madison Square Garden, surrounded by a crowd of reporters at Celtics’ shootaround. Just a few feet away, Al Horford got up three-pointers alongside a handful of Celtics assistants, while Jaylen Brown went through his full-speed shooting routine on the other end of the court.

It hadn’t even been a full hour since the team officially announced the 34-year-old veteran’s signing — but Craig was nonetheless happy to be around the team after a whirlwind 24 hours that saw him fly from Chicago to Boston, receive a tour of the facilities, complete his physical, and ultimately join his new team in New York City late Friday.

Craig, who was waived by the Chicago Bulls last week after spending just over a year with the team, said that deciding to join the Celtics as a free agent was an easy choice. Joining a championship contender was very important to him, he said.

“You always want to play for something and compete for something,” Craig said. “I’m a super competitor — and I want to play basketball the right way at the highest level. Just to get an opportunity to come play with these guys was a no-brainer.”

What Torrey Craig thinks he can bring to Boston

Craig, an eight-year NBA veteran who began his professional career in Australia and New Zealand, has enjoyed stints with the Nuggets, Bucks, Suns, Pacers, and Bulls. He’s been to the NBA Finals as a member of the Suns in 2021.

As such, when asked what he can bring to the defending champions as their newest signee, Craig said “experience and leadership” without hesitation, while acknowledging the team is fresh off a title.

Throughout his NBA career, Craig averaged 6 points per game on 45.4% FG, and shot 35.5% from three. His shooting has trended upwards of late — he shot at least 39% from three in each of his last two seasons. As such, he expects to shoot open looks when he’s on the floor for Boston, fitting right into the Celtics’ three-point heavy offense.

“All the teams that I’ve been on have been preaching to me to shoot your shot and play with confidence,” Craig said. “It’s no different here. You can tell the way they play, the shots they shoot — they take the shots that are available to them. Obviously, they got tough shotmakers in JB and Jayson. But, all those other guys, they’ll shoot the shots that are available to them. I’ll do the same.”

When he was deciding between teams upon entering the buyout market, Craig said that the team’s connectivity and discipline stood out.

“They’re a deep team, super talented,” he said. “Well-coached, well-disciplined. They play the right way. They know what it takes to win: playing defense, playing together and having each other’s backs. You can just see it. The team chemistry and they allow each other to feed off each other and play together and I think that’s why they’ve been so dominant these past couple years.”

Jayson Tatum agreed that Craig can bring versatility and experience to the roster.

“Veteran presence. A guy that can adapt to the group, play off of guys, space the floor, set a toughness, be able to guard,” Tatum said. “Just another guy that can add to our group and be versatile on both ends of the floor.

Just a few hours before Craig’s signing was first reported by ESPN’s Shams Charania, Brad Stevens noted that their 14th player might not be someone who’ll regularly be in the rotation.

“We believe in this group, and if we bring somebody in, that means that we believe they’ll add to this group,” Stevens said. “That doesn’t mean they’ll play, but when called upon, they can be ready to go in big moments.”

It sounds like Craig is on the same page on that front: “Just coming in and being an extra guy whenever the team needs it,” he said of his mindset. “Add to the wing depth of this team. Just being another defender, another physical body that you can throw out there and produce.”

Craig is quickly acclimating to a brand-new Celtics group

Craig has previously shared the floor with one current Celtic — Jrue Holiday in Milwaukee in 2021 — and described his impression of this current group as overwhelmingly positive.

“The hardest part is learning everyone’s names,” he added, moments after shaking hands with numerous player development coaches and team personnel at shootaround.

As far as Joe Mazzulla, the two spoke on the phone on Friday night and chatted further on Saturday morning. Craig smiled when asked about what he’d heard about the head coach in his first day as a Celtic.

“You don’t really need to hear much about Joe — you can just see it,” he said. “I think he’s a unique coach, definitely one-of-a-kind. Definitely a guy I look forward to playing for.”

Craig’s brief conversation with Mazzulla left him feeling like the two were on the same page.

“I pretty much understand him, he pretty much understands me,” Craig said. “We already have that understanding of each other and being communicative.”

On Saturday night, when the Celtics face the Knicks, Craig won’t be active, as he’s still recovering from a right ankle injury.

He said he’s day-to-day and that he’s feeling pretty good: “I don’t expect to play tonight. But hopefully soon.”