Jordan Walsh called his ejection a "dumb decision."
Jordan Walsh called his ejection a "dumb decision."Danielle Parhizkaran/Globe Staff
LAS VEGAS – Jordan Walsh called his ejection Monday against the Heat a “rookie mistake.” His coach, Joe Mazzulla, watching from high in the bleachers of Cox Pavilion with his family, texted his young swingman and said he “loved” the fire.
Walsh was tossed from the Celtics’ 100-96 loss in the second quarter after picking up his second technical foul just moments after being assessed his first.
Walsh made a driving layup and was fouled at the 3:41 mark of the second period and then exchanged shoves with Miami’s Erik Stevenson for his first tech.
After fouling Pelle Larsson on the inbounds, the two faced off again with Walsh pushing Larsson into the first row, just feet from president of basketball operations Brad Stevens and prospective governor Bill Chisholm. Larsson had to be held back while Walsh screamed in excitement. The excitement would be short-lived as he was tossed.
“It was a dumb decision; I low key forgot I got the first tech,” Walsh said. “I also remembered that don’t nobody really hit anybody in the NBA. So I really didn’t have no reason to attack him but I thought that it was dumb. It was a rookie mistake, immature for me to do it. Can’t let it happen again.”
Walsh was led to the makeshift locker room behind the Celtics bench and began looking at his phone.
“Yeah [Mazzulla] told me he loved it,” Walsh said. “He was texting me like, ‘I love this out of you.’ Joe liked it. Don’t know if Brad liked it. We’ll see what happens.”
Walsh, trying to make a positive impression in his third summer league, said opposing teams have been physical with him on defense during the first three games. He opted to stand up for himself.
“For one, I don’t really like to get pushed around,” he said. “I feel like this whole summer league I’ve been getting hit and people have been doing all type of stuff to me. I was kind of letting it slide but at the same time, I should have known better than to take it to that next level. I knew better than that. But for sure, I don’t want to be no pushover, I don’t want to let somebody roll over for me.”
The most encouraging sign from the loss was the second-half performance of second-year swingman Baylor Scheierman.
After missing 13 of 15 3-point attempts in Boston’s first two games, Scheierman responded by nailing three triples in the second half, including a corner jumper that drew the Celtics to within 1 point with 32.5 seconds left.
But the Celtics yielded a late 8-0 run and the Heat sank free throws to seal their first summer win. Boston, which had won its first two games, trailed by 13 points at halftime before a spirited second-half rally.
Scheierman finished with 19 points on 7-for-19 shooting as he vies for more minutes on the Celtics’ retooled roster.
*One of the more intriguing players in summer league is Celtics burly forward Kenneth Lofton Jr., who is vying for an NBA return after playing last season in China. Lofton is an undersized forward center at 6 feet, 6 inches but he uses his girth to get to the rim and added a 3-pointer in the Celtics’ second-half run. He finished with 12 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists as he continues to look more comfortable in his new environment.
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There weren’t any Celtics players who sat courtside for the Monday matchup but Chisholm was present along with team president Rich Gotham and minority owner Steve Pagliuca. Coach Matt Reynolds also gave two-way center Amari Williams the day off after he played in the first two games. First-round pick Hugo Gonzalez returned to the starting lineup after resting Sunday. He finished with 10 points and seven assists on 3-for-12 shooting.
Gary Washburn is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at gary.washburn@globe.com. Follow him @GwashburnGlobe.