Lost in the shuffle of too many mouths to feed on last season’s Boston Celtics, reserve point guard Brad Wanamaker’s shot at the NBA seemed doomed to irrelevance almost from the rip.
It’s not that he wasn’t capable.
That much was made clear in practice and the handful of games he actually played significant minutes.
Even then, with so many players above him in the pecking order desperate for touches, he rarely had a chance to score, instead being tasked with being relegated to garbage time scoring or simply being a competent floor general when injury struck.
So, one would understand if the Pitt product had decided to pass on returning to the team that simply couldn’t give Wanamaker the burn his budding NBA career needed to find firm footing. But when the team made an offer with few guarantees apart from the money it offered, the former Panther signed on anyway.
“That’s how it’s been my whole life,” explained the Philadelphia native via MassLive’s Tom Westerholm. “I’ve never had anything handed to me. I kind of like that approach. Keeps you hungry, keeps you wanting more.”
Now, with fewer mouths to feed and a key injury plaguing the franchise after Gordon Hayward fractured his hand against the San Antonio Spurs, it’s the Celtics who want more.
Of Wanamaker’s play, that is.
Finally granted an opportunity to show he can make meaningful contributions to a winning team, the 30-year-old floor general is doing precisely that. In 14 games, he’s boosted his production (6.6 points, 1.9 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game) significantly from his averages in the previous season averages (3.9 points, 1.1 boards, and 1.6 dishes per game).
Described by an emphatic Brad Stevens as having a “huge” impact for the Celtics (courtesy of the Boston Globe’s Adam Himmelsbach) over the course of their surprisingly successful season, the Celtics head coach was effusive in his praise for Wanamaker’s newly-expanded role with the team.
“[It’s] one of the more important things on our team, because you know what you’re getting every day. And he’s been really good. You can play with him with the ball, he can play off of it. He can guard bigger guys because he’s strong, and he’s very smart. So he makes the other players around him better when he’s in the game.”
One of many examples on this season’s roster currently exceeding the understandably low expectations fans and analysts had for the team coming into the season, Wanamaker’s improved play has not gone unnoticed by his teammates either.
In fact, quite the opposite:
“His work ethic is second to none,” said former NCAA foe and current teammate Kemba Walker. “It’s no surprise when he comes in and does what he does. He’s just solid … He’s a leader, man, a natural born leader. He’s a great guy, very high character. He gets along with everybody. He’s just one of those guys that you need around.”
One might expect to hear exactly this sort of thing about Walker himself, whose transformational leadership-by-example has been credited as a primary figure in Boston’s current success. No faint praise by any measure.
“He brings a certain poise and understanding of the game,” added third-year swingman Jayson Tatum. “He really is like a true point guard out there. Slows things down. He’s an OG.”
While his current opportunity will almost certainly be pared back once Hayward returns to health mid-December, Wanamaker has no plans to relax until someone else’s injury raises his profile in the rotation. He could easily have more nights like his 14-point, 5 assist nights off the bench in Wednesday’s loss to the Los Angeles Clippers.
“Just go out there and produce every chance I get,” Wanamaker offered. “That’s the biggest key … You never know when your number is going to be called. So, you have to be ready.”
Precisely what Boston needs right now and, if truth be told, every day.