With Sam Hauser out with lower back pain, the conventional wisdom was that head coach Joe Mazzulla would tap fellow wing Jordan Walsh to take those minutes.
Not so fast.
“We have the flexibility and the depth to go a different route,” Mazzulla said before tip-off against the Wizards on Thursday night. “It may not necessarily be a wing. It could be a guard. It could be a big. It just depends on what the matchups are in those second units. Our sub patterns will change game-to-game and change within the game.”
Al Horford again got the start against Washington and played just 20 minutes after 26 against the New York Knicks. But unlike on Tuesday, Mazzulla went three-deep into his center rotation using Luke Kornet (16 minutes), Xavier Tillman (15), and Neemias Queta (14) in that ninth man slot.
“I have trust in whoever we call that they’ll be ready to play just because of the work they put in and the things that they do,” Mazzulla continued.
Some of that work certainly includes Xavier Tillman and his three-point shot. After hitting 6-of-11 from behind the arc in the preseason, he missed all three on Ring Night, but bounced back with a 2-for-3 performance against the Wiz.
With Tillman, the Celtics have another versatile defender that can also stretch the floor in the mold of Horford and Kristaps Porzingis.
When asked about the team’s second unit without Hauser, Derrick White said, “it don’t change much. The standard is the standard and no matter who we put in there, we expect the same thing. Obviously, it’s not Sam Hauser running around out there, but there are a lot of different ways to create advantages. I thought all the bigs did a great job for us today. No matter who we put in, we expect them to do what they do and had a good game for us tonight.”
Through the preseason, it was Kornet that got the starting nod. Surrounded by stars, he’s a natural connector for all of Boston’s talent. He’s got a good touch around the rim and is a huge lob target from the dunker spot, but ultimately, his “do what they do” is his understanding of angles and where everybody is on the floor.
In addition to his vision and instincts defending pick-and-rolls, he’s an above average big on the high post and a skilled passer on the short roll.
And then there’s Queta.
“Athletic,” White described his springy teammate. “Seems to get every offensive rebound. Just a big body around the rim. I just think he’s a little more comfortable, a little more sure of himself, knowing where to be at in the offense. I think maybe last year, I think maybe he was thinking too much, but this year, he’s just playing, doing what he do.”
After being promoted from a two-way to a standard deal before the playoffs last year, Queta signed a three-year, $7.2 million contract over the summer. He’s still raw — it’s hard not to see a lot of early Robert Williams III in his game — but he’s active in the restricted area and has great hands. He turned his four offensive rebounds into eight points against 265 pounds and 83 inches of Jonas Valančiūnas.
The Celtics will wait another two months for Porzingis’ return or however long it takes for him to be 100% because 1) he’s an important piece in their championship aspirations and maybe more so, 2) they can.
