BOSTON — The addition of Torrey Craig to the Boston Celtics last month served as a potential road block to 20-year-old Jordan Walsh. The second-year pro had seen his minutes diminish in recent weeks amid limited offensive contributions and a healthier roster on the whole.
Entering Wednesday, Walsh had not played at all for Boston in three of the team’s last five games and saw over 10 minutes just once since December 31st. After being a staple of Joe Mazzulla’s rotation earlier in the year, his chances looked numbered with a veteran like Craig now in the fold.
However, with Boston down three starters including Jayson Tatum on Wednesday night, Walsh got the call off the bench over Craig and Baylor Scheierman by Mazzulla. The Celtics coach leaned on an eight-man rotation all night and rewarded Walsh for his stout defense with a season-high 20 minutes in the 128-118 win.
“Just with guys out, opportunity is there,” Mazzulla said. “His ability to defend in individual defense, these guys do a great job of breaking guys down, and he’s really gotten better at that, and we needed someone who offensive rebounds.
“I think he got two big ones in the first half, I think he ended up with one more there, so just continuing to get better. It’s an opportunity to get him out there and make sure he continues to grow defensively and rebounding.”
Walsh also made his first 3-point attempt since January 22nd in the victory, his only shot attempt of the night in addition to tallying three offensive rebounds. With Derrick White and Payton Pritchard carrying the offensive load on the night, Walsh was content to play his role on defense and keep the ball moving offensively.
More opportunity should be on the way for Walsh as soon as Thursday night with Boston likely to be down several bodies on the back-to-back. Sam Hauser left Wednesday’s win late with an ankle sprain and Jaylen Brown is a candidate to sit out as well as he deals with knee soreness.
The best case scenario for the Celtics all year long was to have the 20-year-old Walsh emerge as a viable contributor on the wing since he remains under contract for two more years. Wednesday’s win was a step in the right direction on that front as Boston tries to toe the line of resting their regulars and winning game. For one night, Walsh helped the team achieve both.
* _**BETTING:**_ _Check out our_ [_MA sports betting guide_](https://www.masslive.com/betting/guides/how-to-bet/)_, where you can learn basic terminology, definitions and how to read odds for those interested in learning how to bet in Massachusetts._