Jay Scrubb certainly impressed during a Summer League stint with the Boston Celtics in 2023.
The Celtics haven’t forgotten about it.
Boston reportedly signed Scrubb to an Exhibit 10 contract Tuesday, per CLNS Media’s Bobby Manning. The Celtics made room for the 6-foot-5, 220-pound guard on the 21-player offseason roster by waiving Tristian Enaruma following its second game against the Denver Nuggets in Abu Dhabi.
Scrubb landed a two-way contract with the Celtics last season, but missed the entire campaign after tearing his ACL during a Celtics practice. But it appears Scrubb is back to full strength, posting a picture of himself in Celtics gear working out at Auerbach Center and captioning the photo “fully cleared.”
The Celtics will hope the 24-year-old can recapture what he showed over a year ago in Summer League action. He averaged 14.4 points, 3.6 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.2 steals while shooting 40% from 3-point range.
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Scrubb will get an opportunity to showcase his talent over Boston’s remaining three preseason games, but he will likely spend most, if not all, of the upcoming campaign in the G League with the Maine Celtics.
Just playing on that stage has to be somewhat of a win for Scrubb, though, considering his unconventional journey to the NBA. He got drafted No. 55 overall by the Brooklyn Nets in the 2020 NBA Draft out of John A. Logan College, a junior college in Carterville, Ill.
Scrubb was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers, where he appeared in 22 games, including one start, over two seasons. He then spent the 2022-23 season with the Orlando Magic.
The opportunity in front of Scrubb should help him moving forward. He gets to learn from a talented roster fresh off an NBA title while getting plenty of playing time in the G League alongside two-way players like JD Davison, Drew Peterson and Anton Watson.
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Featured image via David Butler II/Imagn Images