After handily profitable a championship final season, the Celtics introduced again almost the identical roster. Almost. Days after the parade, Brad Stevens made his first first spherical decide as President of Basketball Operations with Baylor Scheierman.
Scheierman had been on the minds of the Celtics’ entrance workplace from even earlier than the 2024 NBA Draft. He had labored out in Boston two years prior popping out of South Dakota State and the workforce stored him on their radar whereas he was at Creighton. After maintaining tabs on him, they grabbed him at #30.
After a powerful displaying in Summer season League averaging over 11 factors per recreation, hitting almost 30% from behind the arc, and allotting 3.4 assists per recreation, Scheierman hit the load room and added muscle to his 24-year-old body. With assist from the Celtics coaching employees, he modified his weight-reduction plan to bulk up for the pains of the skilled recreation.
Sam Hauser, one in every of Boston’s largest developmental success tales of late, has already taken discover in his fellow Midwesterner.
“He’s an excellent shooter, however he’s much more than a shooter,” Hauser mentioned at Media Day. “He’s acquired a very good really feel for the sport. He’s fairly artful. The very best factor I can do is simply attempt to assist him on this first 12 months.”
Together with Director of Participant Improvement Craig Luschenat, Hauser has labored with the rookie on a faster launch on his leap shot and day by day routines as a way to cope with an 82-game common season. However on the ground, Scheierman remains to be the scrappy 6’6 guard out of Nebraska.
“I identical to to compete, whether or not that’s diving on the bottom for a unfastened ball, taking a cost, leaping over a chair like I did in Summer season League and getting a unfastened ball,” Scheierman advised NBC Sports activities Boston at Media Day. “Simply doing no matter it takes to win, whether or not that’s rebounding, taking pictures, playmaking, on the finish of the day, I simply wish to win.”
Scheierman patterns his recreation after fellow lefty Luke Kennard and Austin Reaves, however rising up, it was former Celtic Pistol Pete Maravich that grew his love of the sport and made him eventual select hoops over soccer.
He is aware of that he must work on his protection and thru two days of coaching camp, he’s already impressing his head coach.
“He’s bodily,” Joe Mazzulla mentioned after the workforce’s second official observe. “It’s very troublesome to regulate to NBA protection. From Day 1 to Day 2, he made the adjustment. He made some nice bodily defensive performs right now. For a younger participant, an important factor is ‘are you able to play protection, are you able to execute a defensive system, and may you rebound?’ He’s gotten higher at that since Day 1.”
Scheierman stands out as the new child on the block, however he’s already becoming in with the best mindset off the ground and contributing between the traces.
