Baylor Scheierman was in the Celtics‘ starting lineup Sunday night even though he fractured his left thumb in Friday’s win over Brooklyn, Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe writes in a subscriber-only story. The second-year guard made his eighth consecutive start and managed a normal workload, finishing with 12 points, four rebounds and two assists in 31 minutes. The thumb injury on his shooting hand may have affected his outside shot as he only connected on 2-of-9 attempts from beyond the arc.
Scheierman explained that the injury occurred in a collision with Nets rookie Egor Demin late in the first half.
“He was running the other way, and I thought he was just going to chase after the ball because it was up in the air, and I think my thumb just kind of went into his chest,” Scheierman said. “Just hurt and looked down and just kind of felt weird and kind of just locked.”
He was able to tape his thumb and finish the game and didn’t realize the extent of the injury until X-rays revealed the fracture. He took some jumpers during the day on Sunday and decided he would be able to play.
“We’re kind of just evaluating it as it goes, but I feel good enough to be out there, so that’s how it’s going to be,” Scheierman said. “I’m not going to sit out.”
There’s more on the Celtics:
- Neemias Queta heard some “MVP” chants from the Boston crowd while posting a career-high 27 points to go with 17 rebounds on Sunday, per Souichi Terada of MassLive. After the game, Queta recalled an offseason phone call from coach Joe Mazzulla explaining that he would be the starting center following a roster overhaul and telling him to be prepared to handle that role. “I feel like it was depositing his trust in me,” Queta said. “Just having my back through and through it all. It wasn’t like the easiest summer for me, too. He was always there. Present. Just trying to help me out. Just trying to get me as confident as I could just to get out here and help us win.”
- Jaylen Brown hit another career milestone by becoming the 12th player to reach 13,000 points in a Celtics uniform, per Brian Robb of MassLive. Brown has become the team’s No. 1 scoring option for the first time in his career and is making a strong case for MVP consideration. He said the players have been able to adjust after the roster was reshuffled at the trade deadline. “We started to get going and a couple of guys are no longer on the team,” Brown said. “So then we get (Nikola) Vucevic, so now our identity kind of shifts a little bit again. And I think we’ve done a good job of just being unselfish and playing Celtic basketball. And I think we’re starting to figure it out.”
- Vucevic’s shooting struggles since joining the Celtics may cause the team to look for another center this summer, but Robb states in a mailbag column that there won’t be many free agents available who are worth more than the veteran’s minimum. He suggests that a trade is more likely, with Daniel Gafford, Onyeka Okongwu, Wendell Carter Jr. and Nic Claxton among the big men holding salaries that fit into Boston’s Traded Player Exception.
Kings drafted Queta. Then let him walk. At 26 he had a career night against Sixers. Good to see players stick with it. And teams helping players to grow. Queta is starting to show. And is playing like a decent starting center. Celtics did well here.