Celtics rookie Baylor Scheierman lives at the crossroads of competition and joy

Two Washington State free throws knotted the game at 74-74. A 21-year-old Baylor Scheierman inbounded the ball for South Dakota State. Zeke Mayo clutched it, his eyes eagerly seeking out Scheierman. As two Cougars defenders cornered him, he made the pass.

With 20 seconds left on the game clock, Scheierman dribbled the ball past half-court. Spokane Arena, packed with Cougars fans and family members, rose to their feet. Washington State got in their defensive stance. All eyes were on Scheierman. Anticipation slowly grew as they awaited the next movements.

But the Jackrabbits knew what was about to happen.

As the 10-second mark came and went, big man Luke Appel went to set a screen for Scheierman at the top of the key, but he ignored it. He drove in, stopped by a stunting Washington State defender. Noah Freidel ran across the free-throw line, running his defender into the path of Scheierman’s.

The star Jackrabbit brought the ball up to the left wing, faked in, pulled back, and sent Andrej Jakimovski crashing to the ground in a split. Scheierman released the ball with 1.4 seconds left, and the buzzer sounded by the time it hit nylon.

An audible groan flooded the crowd as Scheierman and his teammate celebrated on their opponent’s home floor. The plan was always for him to take the shot. His coaches knew it. His teammates knew it. He knew it. And he relished it.

That’s the player the Boston Celtics are getting.

“Being a person who prepares himself for that moment and then delivers when his number’s called, it’s something that’s hard to find,” Creighton head coach Greg McDermott, who recruited Scheierman from South Dakota State, told CelticsBlog.

Less than a year after that game-winner, Scheierman traded in his Jackrabbit threads for a Bluejays jersey. His hoop dreams extended far beyond college ball, and if he wanted to see them come to fruition, he knew he needed to challenge himself.

Scheierman had done everything he could for South Dakota State. In his third and final year, he helped them win the Summit League and earn a bid in the NCAA Tournament. They fell short in the Round of 64, but he left his heart on the floor of Frost Arena each and every night.

“Every time I got to the gym, Baylor was already there,” South Dakota State head coach Eric Henderson told CelticsBlog. “The last person to leave the gym, Baylor was still there. And so, just that passion that he had, and him putting us on his back when we had our historic season the last year he had with us.”

It was this work ethic, this confidence that led McDermott to bring him on board following the 2021-22 season.

“When you meet the guy, you just kind of fall in love with his confidence and his commitment to wanting to get better,” said McDermott.

Scheierman’s basketball journey led him back home to Creighton. He played high school ball just two hours away in Aurora, Nebraska, a city with a population of 4,717. Now, Scheierman is the only active NBA player from the state.

From a tiny city spawned an aura of credence, and Scheierman’s origin plays a huge part in the way he carries himself on the court.

“Very kind, but very confident,” McDermott said of Scheierman. “You don’t get to where he’s at, coming from a small town, if you don’t have some confidence.

“So, Baylor won’t back down to anybody. He’s not afraid of anyone. He really feels like he belongs. And he’s backed that up with a lot of hard work.”

Whether it’s big-time threes, nifty dimes, or leading his high school football team with a state-record 59 touchdowns, Scheierman has always played with his heart on his sleeve.

It’s a way of life that bleeds into practice and games alike.

“You know how it is sometimes where players, whether you call them gamers or they’re maybe a little bit, or not quite as competitive in practice? You’re never worried about that with Baylor,” said Henderson. “He wanted to win every drill. Every game drill that we had in practice, Baylor wanted to win.”

Scheierman’s fireyness is met at a crossroads, however. A positive one.

For anyone who puts the time into becoming an NBA player, basketball becomes more than a game. It’s life.

With that grind, joy can be sucked out of the game. The once-childhood playground game that kids around the world grow up playing becomes a job. Scheierman hasn’t fallen into that trap.

He battles harder than anyone…

“He’ll fight and claw and scrap and dive on the floor for loose balls,” said McDermott. “I mean, that’s what this guy’s about. That’s his DNA.”

…yet simultaneously plays with an unmatched bliss. And it’s been that way his whole life.

“Number one, it was just the joy that he had playing the game,” Henderson said, explaining what led him to recruit Scheierman out of high school. “Like, he had a flare that he wasn’t afraid to make a mistake, and he just had fun playing the game.”

And unlike some hoopers, Scheierman’s love for the game doesn’t shine through most while nailing a deep three or throwing down a poster jam. Instead, it’s when he’s making those around him better.

“The first trait that I fell in love with about Baylor’s game is his passing,” said Henderson. “And so, when your best quality is passing, it just makes everybody around you feel so good.”

For Scheierman, just being on a basketball court is elation, but a perfect pass is true basketball euphoria. It’s been that way since high school, and it was one of the first traits that stood out during Coach Henderson’s recruiting process.

“It probably came out mostly in his passing. Whether it was a full-length football throw for a layup, and how he loved to celebrate that, a behind-the-back pass, or just a simple pass even, that flare, and that enjoyment for the game was the first thing that stood out.”

Scheierman’s mix of jubilation and conviction helped him to two successful seasons with the Bluejays. The first year was spent getting used to the higher level of competition in the Big East, but in the second, he got back to dominance.

In his final collegiate season, Scheierman averaged 18.5 points, 9.0 rebounds, and 3.9 assists while shooting 44.8% from the field and 38.1% from distance. He led Creighton on a run to the Sweet 16, where they eventually lost to Tennessee. Scheierman’s efforts landed him a spot on the All-Big East team.

From Aurora to Brookings to Omaha, Scheierman found a way to impact winning, and it led him to the NBA. But not right away.

Photo by Bill Wippert/NCAA Photos via Getty Images

Before his move to Creighton, Scheierman tested the NBA waters two years ago. He completed some pre-draft workouts, including one with the Celtics.

“The first time coming through, obviously, was a couple of years ago. They really liked my game,” Scheierman said of his 2022 workout with Boston. “Just my ability to kind of impact the game in different ways, whether that be shooting, passing, dribbling, or just my IQ.

“And they felt like I could get a little stronger, a little quicker, a little more explosive a couple of years ago. And that’s kind of what I tried to improve on these last two years at Creighton, and I feel like I did that.”

Two years and two deep tournament runs with the Bluejays later, Scheierman got back in the gym with the Celtics. And this time, it panned out.

“For a small town kid to have a dream like this and then see it come to fruition is really special to be part of,” said McDermott, who attended Scheierman’s Draft Night gathering.

Boston selected Scheierman with the No. 30 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, investing in his continued growth as a player.

“As I told Brad Stevens last night, he got a good one,” said McDermott. “And Baylor impacts the game and loves the game in a lot of ways.”

With the NBA’s new two-day draft format, Scheierman was left on the edge of his seat as pick after pick flew by. Terrence Shannon Jr. to the Minnesota Timberwolves at 27. Ryan Dunn to the Phoenix Suns at 28. Isaiah Collier to the Utah Jazz at 29. Before he knew it, there was only one pick left, and his name had yet to be called.

“We were talking a little bit about what the plan was going to be for today if it didn’t work out,” McDermott said with a chuckle. “But I’m just really happy for Baylor, and also happy for the Celtics.”

Teams ahead of the Celtics liked Scheierman. They told him as much. But they went in other directions, clearing a pathway for Stevens to make his first first-round selection since taking over as President of Basketball Operations.

“I was definitely confident coming into Draft Night that I was gonna get picked that first night,” Scheierman said. “I thought I had a great pre-draft process. And there were a few teams that were interested in me before the Celtics, and I thought there was a good chance.

“But my agent did a good job of just telling me [that] there’s a lot of things that can happen on Draft Night. And at the end of the day, everything happens for a reason. I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be. So, I’m super excited to be here.”

Now, Scheierman is ready to throw himself headfirst into Celtics culture.

Photo by Suzanne Kreiter/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

All year, and especially since winning Banner 18, the team has been screaming out “Different Here” to whoever will listen. When the rookies stepped into the building, it was one of the first messages they sent to them, according to fellow first-year Anton Watson.

Scheierman understands how truly different it is in Boston, and he’s eager to be a part of it.

“Just super excited to be a part of this organization,” Scheierman said. “Obviously, the best organization in basketball. And a great fan base. The best in the NBA. And so, just super excited to be a part of that and just get to work.”

And through his first few Summer League practices, he’s bringing the same fire that he’s carried with him his whole life.

“The thing that comes to mind with Baylor is he’s just a competitor, and I think that’s great,” said Celtics assistant and Summer League head coach DJ MacLeay. “I think seeing him compete on a day-to-day basis and having an open-mindedness to what we do here is something that he’s done a great job of in the first two days.”

But perhaps more importantly, he doesn’t want to step on what the team already has.

At the trade deadline, Stevens expressed the importance of not subtracting by addition. “When you add players to your team, they can add to your team or take away from your team,” Stevens said. “You’ve just got to be careful.”

As evidenced by their seamless, drama-less run to an NBA Championship, the Celtics embodied everything a perfect sports locker room should be. Not only does Scheierman see and appreciate that, but it’s one of things he’s most excited about.

“I just really liked the team chemistry that they have,” Scheierman said. “Everybody plays a role, and they are really good at, it’s a team game, and they understand that, and they’re always deflecting credit to one another, and that’s how it should be. The game of basketball is obviously a team game, and obviously, they have tremendous players as well, which is why they were able to win the NBA championship.

“But the team chemistry is something that really stuck out to me, and I think that’s something that I can come in and also just add to that as well. Kind of just being a connector and just being able to impact the game in any way I can to help them win.”

And based on the way he’s interacted with his past teams, he should find no issues with the Celtics.

“Baylor’s like this connector,” Henderson said. “He would hang out with so many different guys on the team. He had a personality that could relate to many people.”

Scheierman possesses the exact type of personality that Boston should want in their locker room.

“He just had that unique confidence about him that he was comfortable around anybody, and it was fun to see him interact with all different teammates,” said Henderson.

After years of falling short, the Celtics finally got the job done this year. Trophies were presented on the TD Garden floor, confetti littered the city’s streets, and at the beginning of next season, a new banner will be raised into the rafters.

That team will be forever cemented in franchise lore, but they don’t want the run to end there. And neither does the fanbase.

Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images

The love that Bostonians showed the Celtics en route to Banner 18 was as ferocious as it was only because of the opposite effect. For however much the city loves their team, they equally refuse to accept anything less than the best.

Every game, quarter, and play is hit with a magnifying glass, and those expectations are only intensified when it comes to the players. But Scheierman is ready to impress.

“I like to impact winning, whether that’s diving on the floor, making threes, or blocking shots, whatever that might be,” Scheierman said. “And I like to have fun while doing it. I think basketball, obviously, is a game that’s meant to be enjoyed, and so, when I’m out there on the court, I just like to have a lot of fun and like to compete.”

Scheierman will nail a 30-foot three-point shot with the confidence of a thousand professionals, and on the next play, he’ll sprawl out on the floor, chasing a loose ball that seemed ungettable.

And all the while, he’ll be smiling.

“I think he just embraced every time that he could get on the floor,” Henderson said. “And he had fun, he smiled, he made sure others around him were having fun. And so, that’s what comes to my mind when you ask that.”

Summer League will be Scheierman’s first chance to show off his talent to Celtics faithful, and he’s ready for it. He may not earn many regular season minutes. He may end up spending most of the year in Maine. But that doesn’t matter.

Scheierman’s basketball persona survives at the intersection of confidence, intensity, selflessness, and joy. And that’s what Celtics basketball is all about.

“They’re gonna love him, and he’s gonna love it there,” said McDermott.