Jordan Walsh feels more connected to his Celtics teammates and could play a bigger role

As a rookie last season, Celtics forward Jordan Walsh was trying to find his way and figure out where he fit. There were some quiet signs at practice that his new teammates didn't yet fully trust him.

During scrimmages, for example, they sometimes refused to give Walsh the ball even when he was open. Refocusing after an inconsistent summer league performance in Las Vegas, Walsh noticed a change in preseason workouts and training camp.

“Trying to gain the respect of my teammates definitely boosted my confidence even more,” Walsh said Friday. “Now (Payton Pritchard) is giving it to me a little bit more, (Jayson Tatum) is giving me advice and giving it to me a little bit more. “All of those things made me feel like I was really a part of this team and that I could help. These people believe it, and I believe it.”

Walsh said when his teammates actually found him last season, he was sometimes hesitant to shoot and their communication with him focused on that. Now there are more helpful dialogues.

“I feel like (Pritchard) has passed it on to me a few times and he says, 'Go create something,'” Walsh said. “So now they don’t just pass it on to me because I’m completely open. They pass it on to me and say, “Go create something for yourself.”

“And when I didn't shoot it, after the play, when we had a timeout, they said, 'Jordan, why didn't you do that?' Why didn't you do that?' We have basketball conversations.”

It all helps Walsh feel more like a part of the team. And that should be beneficial for both Walsh and the Celtics, because unlike last season, when Walsh spent most of the year with the G League affiliate in Maine and never made it into the Celtics' regular rotation, There seems to be a chance for him to be a real contributor.

Walsh appeared relaxed and confident in pre-season. In five games, he averaged 9 points, 4 rebounds and 1.6 assists while shooting 45.5 percent from the field. He seems more comfortable firing 3-point shots and even had moments of brilliance as a distributor on rushing offenses.

Walsh is quick and athletic and has relied on those skills throughout his basketball career. But at this level, he's discovered that it's more important to go at your own pace than to go full throttle.

“After talking to Jrue (Holiday) a lot, he told me that when you're going 100 miles an hour you're always going to make a mistake,” Walsh said. “But if you aim for 80-85, then you can make the right read, make the right decision and see the floor clearly 99 percent of the time.

“So that’s how I recorded it. Let me slow down a bit. I can still take my first step out of a triple threat and get past someone. Let me just slow down a little bit so I have a little more control. I can see the floor, I can do the right reading.”

What is Walsh's speed limit now?

“I was definitely 110,” he said, smiling. “But now I’m trying to relax at a cool 87.”

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Virginia coach Tony Bennett's resignation on Friday stunned the college basketball world. Bennett, 55, said he is disillusioned with this new era of college basketball in which the transfer portal and NIL funding are as important as coaching.

Celtics forward Sam Hauser, who played for Bennett and the Cavaliers during his senior season in 2020-21, said he had an idea that Bennett might retire, but he didn't think that would be the case now.

“He helped me achieve my goal, which was to get to the NBA,” Hauser said. “He helped me improve as a player on both ends of the field and he was just a great guy to rely on and someone to talk to whenever you needed to talk to someone, be it in basketball or just about things in life.”

“So he’s a great person, one of the most genuine people in college basketball.”

Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him @adamhimmelsbach.