Boston Celtics: 3 takeaways from C’s blowout win over Minnesota

Boston Celtics takeaway No. 2) The energy of Aaron Nesmith

With Al Horford missing the game due to personal reasons, Aaron Nesmith was called upon by coach Ime Udoka to take his spot in the rotation.

He finished the night with six points and four rebounds in 16 minutes of action.

The Celtics drafted Nesmith with the intention of adding one of the most polished young shooters to their already successful young core. Although that hasn’t been the case throughout his young career, the wing has found his way onto the court in other ways, including his intense energy.

He’s always the first one to hit the floor, sometimes to a fault, or crash the glass, something that the C’s benefit from immensely.

He finds his way into most fastbreaks when he’s on the court, always running from hoop to hoop to finish plays at the rim. He’s not scared of anybody on either end of the court–Nesmith plays every minute like it’s his last.

Of course, if he got his shot to fall (24.2 percent from deep on the year) he’d be an infinitely more effective player, easily finding a spot in the rotation. However, it doesn’t make sense for him to play over the likes of Payton Pritchard or Daniel Theis when everyone’s healthy.

He’s a valuable depth piece to have in this upcoming playoff run, but Boston hopefully won’t have to rely on the second-year man too much in big situations.