With the Boston Celtics facing a substantial deficit to the San Antonio Spurs, head coach Brad Stevens decided to shake things up on Wednesday night with his team down by 18 points.
Stevens looked over his bench and inserted 7-foot-5 center Tacko Fall into the game less than two minutes into the start of the second quarter. It was just the fourth appearance of the season for Fall with the Celtics and his first in the first half.
Fall logged a season-high 10 minutes during the 129-114 loss as he recorded four points, three rebounds and one steal off of the bench. Fall gave the Celtics another big man presence that could help set screens and get his teammates open, something he couldn’t believe he was doing.
“It was crazy. I was like, ‘Wow, I’m about to set a screen for Kemba Walker!’” Fall said, via Jared Weiss of The Athletic.
Fall had some encouraging play on the defensive end during the game. Though he failed to record a block, Fall held his own in pick-and-roll situations and kept the ball in front of him. Fall also had an impressive post play against LaMarcus Aldridge.
Tacko Buckets pic.twitter.com/AR6jwfU5Cu
— Dime (@DimeUPROXX) January 9, 2020
Fall has spent the majority of the season in the G League with the Maine Red Claws. In 12 games played, Fall is averaging 13.8 points, 10.6 rebounds and 3.1 blocks.
Though Fall has spent the majority of the season in the G League, he was among the frontcourt leaders in All-Star voting, placing sixth in the second fan returns released on Thursday.
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