After handily profitable a championship final season, the Celtics introduced again practically the identical roster. Practically. 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 staff stored him on their radar whereas he was at Creighton. After retaining tabs on him, they grabbed him at #30.
After a robust displaying in Summer time League averaging over 11 factors per sport, hitting practically 30% from behind the arc, and doling out 3.4 assists per sport, Scheierman hit the burden room and added muscle to his 24-year-old body. With assist from the Celtics coaching workers, he modified his weight-reduction plan to bulk up for the trials of the skilled sport.
Sam Hauser, one among Boston’s greatest developmental success tales of late, has already taken discover in his fellow Midwesterner.
“He’s shooter, however he’s much more than a shooter,” Hauser mentioned at Media Day. “He’s obtained a very good really feel for the sport. He’s fairly artful. The perfect factor I can do is simply attempt to assist him on this first 12 months.”
Together with Director of Participant Growth Craig Luschenat, Hauser has labored with the rookie on a faster launch on his leap shot and every day routines with a view to take care of 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 time League and getting a unfastened ball,” Scheierman instructed NBC Sports activities Boston at Media Day. “Simply doing no matter it takes to win, whether or not that’s rebounding, capturing, playmaking, on the finish of the day, I simply wish to win.”
Scheierman patterns his sport 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 staff’s second official apply. “It’s very tough to regulate to NBA protection. From Day 1 to Day 2, he made the adjustment. He made some nice bodily defensive performs immediately. For a younger participant, a very powerful factor is ‘are you able to play protection, are you able to execute a defensive system, and might you rebound?’ He’s gotten higher at that since Day 1.”
Scheierman often is the new child on the block, however he’s already becoming in with the appropriate mindset off the ground and contributing between the traces.
