Why Brad Stevens Believes Celtics’ Jordan Walsh Will ‘Create Havoc’

The way Boston Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens described Jordan Walsh, it sounded a lot like the player Stevens just traded away.

Stevens couldn’t help himself from raving about Walsh’s defensive skill set — the same area in which Marcus Smart made his biggest impact — after drafting the Arkansas product with the No. 38 overall pick in Thursday’s NBA draft.

The 6-foot-7, 205-pound forward possesses the ideal measurables and athleticism to be a versatile defender at the next level and Stevens believes Walsh’s defensive play will give opposing team’s plenty of headaches.

“He has a special ability laterally and with his wingspan to swallow people up defensively,” Stevens told reporters on draft night, per team-provided video. “He really creates havoc with his arms and with his energy and with his ability to move his feet.”

No doubt it will be the defense from Walsh that will get him on the floor with the Celtics during his rookie season, especially since he’s still a major work in progress on the offensive end.

But Stevens isn’t all too concerned about Walsh’s ineffectiveness on offense. The 19-year-old averaged just 7.1 points per game while shooting 27.8% from 3-point range. He did knock down 34.4% of his 3-pointers over Arkansas’ final 19 games.

And Stevens sees that steady improvement continuing until Walsh becomes more of an asset on offense.

“He’s a better shooter and we had him in twice for workouts,” Stevens said. “He’s just getting better and better. I always thought his touch looked good but he looked hesitant at times. I think over time he’ll become a really good shooter who has the athleticism to finish and drive closeouts. He’ll be ahead on the defensive end to start.”