Jaylen Brown and Joe Mazzulla stress the importance of the Celtics’ bench
"It’s important to build confidence and get our guys feeling good.”
As the Celtics continue to barrel towards the playoffs with a stunning 32-9 record, Jaylen Brown knows that building confidence amongst the team’s second unit is essential to securing Banner 18.
“We play through those guys. Payton [Pritchard], Sam [Hauser], getting those guys touches in a game like this, it’s important to build confidence and get our guys feeling good,” Brown said following Wednesday night’s 117-98 victory over the Spurs.
The win left little to the imagination about how well the Celtics bench could perform. Hauser, Pritchard, and Neemias Queta all put in strong minutes and made serious contributions, particularly on defense.
Hauser played 20 minutes against San Antonio and put up 7 points, and 4 rebounds.
Coach Joe Mazzulla echoed the importance of building up the confidence of key rotational players like Hauser.
“He does a really good job of not giving up angles, and he’s been that way since day one,” Mazzulla said after a 145-113 win over the Rockets Saturday. “So I’ve always said he could guard, I always knew he could be a good defender, and the more people attack him, the more reps we get for the playoffs. I hope they continue to do it.”
Pritchard got solid reps in on Wednesday night, adding 12 points, 3 rebounds, and 4 assists during his 27 minutes on the court.
“Payton playing well, even Neemias, showing some great signs could help us down the line,” Brown said.
Queta, the big man on a two-way contract with the Celtics, is starting to show promising consistency.
During his increased 12 minutes on the floor Wednesday night, Queta had 6 points, 8 rebounds, and was responsible for 2 of the team’s 6 blocks.
“He changed the game for us in the first half,” Mazzulla said after Queta stepped up to guard San Antonio’s 7-foot-4 Victor Wembanyama late in the game.
The Portugal-born big averages 13.6 minutes, 4.9 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 56 percent from the field. He’s tough in the paint, providing essential protection and effective drop-back defense.
And as key rotation players rest with injury (starting big man Kristaps Prozingis sat out Wednesday night due to knee inflammation), getting players like Queta into a rhythm is critical.
The Celtics face off against the Denver Nuggets Friday night, as they look to extend their home record to 21-0.
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