Aron Baynes on hitting his second, third career three-pointers: ‘It’s still a work in progress’
Coming into Saturday night’s matchup against the Raptors, Aron Baynes had attempted 19 threes in 269 career games. He’d hit one.
Baynes tripled that total against Toronto, sinking two threes in the first quarter as the Celtics cruised to a 110-99 victory at the Garden.
“I was just trying to find myself, get myself in the right position and give space to the other guys. It’s something I’ve been working on,” Baynes said.
Aron Baynes steps outside for back-to-back triples! šÆš„
The @celtics big man has 12 PTS in the 1st on @NBATV .#Celtics pic.twitter.com/pzCYFhmHbt
ā NBA (@NBA) March 31, 2018
The last time the center scored from deep, he was playing for San Antonio in 2014. That three-pointer also landed on the Garden parquet in a 111-89 win for the Spurs. If Aron Baynes drains a three, especially in Boston, Aron Baynes wins.
“I don’t think that was as pretty, though,” Baynes said. “That was a bit further out and there was a bit of backboard involved in that, mate. It’s all good.”
He said he’s been trying to add a long-range element to his game because of the increased emphasis on three-pointers in the NBA, but it’s still a work in progress. Baynes finished the game with 12 points and five rebounds for the Celtics as they pulled within two games of the Raptors for first place in the Eastern Conference. The teams meet again on Wednesday in Toronto, where the Celtics big man and his counterpart, Jonas ValanÄiÅ«nas, will renew their friendly rivalry.
The centers played together for Lietuvos Rytas in Lithuania and were exchanging a few laughs at half-court during warmups. Baynes got the better of ValanÄiÅ«nas early with his barrage of points in the first quarter, but the Raptors center finished the game with a double-double.
“Jonas and I go way back to our time in Lithuania together. It’s always fun going out there and playing against him. We like to compete against each other and we have since we first ever met so it’s always fun going out there with these guys.”
