Celtics forward Xavier Tillman Sr. was the unlikeliest of heroes to come through during Boston’s second-to-final matchup to close its recent homestand against the Kings, but the 25-year-old has adapted well.
Tillman, the first of two last-minute trade acquisitions landing in Boston during February’s deadline, didn’t have a built-in role awaiting his arrival. The Celtics had a few (very) minor bumps and bruises in managing Kristaps Porzingis and Al Horford throughout the regular season, yet team president of basketball operations Brad Stevens saw no reason to hold back — even with a limited $12.4 million traded-player exception from Grant Williams’ exit.
The situation was vaguely reminiscent in Memphis where Tillman sat toward the backend of the Grizzlies’ depth chart for four seasons. And although he’s only played 14.4 minutes in 16 games off the bench for Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla, the box scores logged into Tillman’s brief Boston tenure don’t tell the whole story.
During Tillman’s 34-game run this season in Memphis, he shot 46.9% from 2-point range for a suffering 27-51 Grizzlies team. Now playing alongside the strongest starting five in the NBA-best Celtics, Tillman’s 2-point percentage has soared to a career-best 72.4% through 16 games in Boston.
Story continues below advertisement
MORE CELTICS
Mazzulla’s been vocal about entrusting those coming off the bench like Tillman, which could come into play once the playoffs commence in the coming weeks.
“Those guys are no different than anybody else,” Mazzulla told reporters after Boston’s win over Sacramento, per CLNS Media. “They’ve won games for us in the past, they’ve started games for us. Everybody gets treated to the same level — the highest level. And you have to be able to win games with different guys.”
Tillman gives the Celtics a versatile mobile interior presence who can fight for rebounds and remain inside for scoring on the other end. With Horford having already converted into more of an outside-shooting unofficial sixth-starter leading the reserves, Tillman’s already supplied Boston with a handful of valuable minutes, such as his first major insertion into the rotation on March 1 against Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks.
Story continues below advertisement
Getting 15:06 minutes, ahead of go-to backup center Luke Kornet, Tillman submitted a solid debut audition, going 3-for-3 from the field with six points as a hyperactive component of Boston’s defense that night. That might not guarantee Tillman a playoff promotion, but it does prove Stevens’ deadline trigger right — to some degree.
Tillman has averaged 3.8 points and 3.1 rebounds on 51% shooting with the Celtics thus far, with four games left in the regular season.
Featured image via Eric Canha/USA TODAY Sports Images
