The Boston Celtics and Aron Baynes are having an excellent season so far. Unfortunately for many of us with attachments to both, they are doing it for opposing franchises.
That doesn’t mean that the former Boston big man, now with the Phoenix Suns, has any ill will for his former team — far from it, in fact.
When Celtics Wire caught up with the Australian big man in Mexico City ahead of the Suns’ match with the San Antonio Spurs, the 33-year-old center expressed nothing but love for his former franchise, and spoke glowingly about the Celtics’ newfound groove.
Baynes is having a surprisingly good season. Not that anyone expected him to have a bad one, but many seemed puzzled that he did not make noise about being traded to Phoenix, with rumbles of him wanting to play for a contender.
"It's pretty awesome that we have so many international guys on one team and we're playing a game in Mexico City."
– @aronbaynes #NBAenMĂ©xico 🇲🇽 pic.twitter.com/BJomaYOh2j— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) December 14, 2019
The general thought was that the Suns were still a season or two away from competing in the Western Conference, and few had the foresight to predict just how well Baynes and newly-added veteran point guard Ricky Rubio would function as a pick-and-roll nightmare for opponents.
Like Boston, Phoenix has slowed after a hot start to the season, dropping seven of their last 10 games. Yet, Phoenix remains in the playoff picture in a hyper-competitive Western Conference even after dropping a game to the San Antonio Spurs on Dec. 14 and the Portland Trail Blazers on the 16th, in no small part to the big man’s career-best season: 14.2 points, 5.4 rebounds, 40.5% 3-point shooting and 67.4% 2-point shooting.
When Celtics Wire caught up with Baynes in Mexico City, the former Celtic had plenty to say about the good things happening in Boston this season without him, his pick-and-roll partnership with Ricky Rubio in Phoenix, and more:
Why do you believe the new-look Celtics are finding success above what many fans and analysts expected for this season?
First and foremost, they’re led by a great coach. I have a lot of respect and gratitude towards Brad [Stevens] for what he was able to help me with throughout my time there. He helped me grow as a person, and as a player. So, I know they’re well-coached, and then they have some really good young guys, and they added an All-Star in Kemba Walker.
Then they got to play [together in the FIBA World Cup] this summer. They got that familiarity, and it helped early on in the season for them to be able to push forward.
Some people call it exceeding expectations, but they’re just trying to go out there and improve in each and every game.
How do you feel about the recent trade rumbles in response to the Celtics’ recent two-game losing streak?
[The frontcourt of Boston] might be different, but their record shows that it’s working for them.
They have some tough games, but everyone does in the NBA. More often than not, they’re doing what they need to do. It’s been fun to watch those guys when I have the opportunity.
What’s the feeling about your own recent growing pains in Phoenix?
We’re taking steps in the right direction, but there’s a lot of work for us to still do.
It’s been good. We have a great group of guys, guys that are buying into the system, and when we play within the system, Monty [Williams] puts us all in a place to succeed.
Spanish point guard Ricky Rubio — who wowed the crowd in Mexico City with his native command of español as much as he did with his play — has been another huge part of your offensive renaissance. What do you have to say about your pick-and-roll partner?
Ricky’s a great player. Being able to watch [him] from afar for a long time … When I first started playing, I heard about this little guy from Spain who’s making a name for himself. Ever since then, I’ve been watching from afar … When he signed here, I was excited to be able to play alongside him, because I’ve seen what he’s been able to do, and I’ve heard good things from [fellow Australian, former Jazz teammate of Rubio] Joe Ingles as well, about what he did in Utah.
I’m excited to get to work with him. He’s one of those guys people don’t put as much emphasis on the type of defense he can play. He really does get out there and just drop the ball, and offensively sees things four or five steps ahead of what’s happening.
It’s evident he impacts us tremendously on the offensive end, and he’s a facilitator. He makes it fun when he moves that ball as well as he does.
Is this recent spate of games the Celtics we should expect, or do they still have room for improvement once healthy?
It’s still early. [Boston] has a lot of room to get better.
Fun is something Baynes and Boston had little of in 2018-19, but each is getting what they likely expected in that most depressing of lost seasons this season. As Baynes and the Celtics find success on different paths, fans of the Gisborne native can take comfort — watching, as all of Australia sometimes does, from afar, with respect, gratitude and appreciation.