Jordan Walsh has quietly become a game-changer for the Celtics

Jordan Walsh knew that he entered this season fighting for his NBA career. The Boston Celtics have a club option on the former second-round pick's contract for the 2026-27 campaign. If they didn't feel he was worthy of retaining for the modest price of $2.4 million, that and the performance that resulted in that choice could have persuaded the rest of the league to pass on him as well.

What Walsh is showing in his third year in the Association is a greater understanding of how to prepare and execute his role on the court.

At training camp, he told Hardwood Houdini his "role player IQ" is an area in which he made one of his most significant leaps as he readied for a season with his career hanging in the balance.

That has translated to him making more impact than ever on cuts and corner crashes. In the Celtics' 117-115 victory vs. the Cleveland Cavaliers, perhaps their gutsiest win this season, the third-year wing snagged six offensive rebounds.

That doesn't include the Tommy Point he earned in the final frame. Walsh wrestled the ball away from De'Andre Hunter, then went 2/2 at the free-throw line after Donovan Mitchell fouled him on his layup attempt.

Those two points added to a career-high 14 points. The 21-year-old converted on 4/7 field goal attempts, including burying a corner three. That was another area he told Hardwood Houdini he made meaningful strides in, ensuring he doesn't have "lazy feet," instead utilizing "quicker feet into the jump shot."

The maturation of Walsh's game at the offensive end of the floor and his ability to make a two-way impact were essential. What he is doing on defense is exactly what the franchise hoped for when the team selected him in 2023.

Jordan Walsh is filling a void for the Celtics

Jrue Holiday is gone. Jayson Tatum is rehabbing from a torn Achilles tendon. And all of Boston's roster changes have tasked Jaylen Brown with carrying more responsibility on offense.

As much as the former Finals MVP loves to guard the opposition's best perimeter player, it's a role he has had to relinquish for the most part. As he prepared to pass the baton, Brown told Walsh he could seize that role.

"We sit next to each other on the plane, so I talk to him all the time," Brown conveyed to Hardwood Houdini after the commendable job Walsh did against James Harden helped the Celtics knock off the Los Angeles Clippers.

"That's what this team needs, is somebody that can go out and guard your best player every single night. And even when Jordan wasn't playing, I was telling him that guy could be you. And he's got his opportunity, and he's playing well right now. So, he's got to keep that going."

Walsh has also put the clamps on Tyrese Maxey in crunch time, made life difficult for Jaren Jackson Jr. in the low post, and he gave Paolo Banchero such a hard time that the Orlando Magic preferred getting Derrick White switched onto their star forward.

The six-foot-six wing is looking more and more like the defensive menace he was with the Arkansas Razorbacks.

His evolution on both sides of the ball is one of the most significant developments taking place for the Celtics this season. After he registered 14 points and 11 rebounds in the win over the Cavaliers, earning career highs in both categories while recording his first double-double, Joe Mazzulla had this to say about Walsh's maturation.

"He's slowly understanding what the role has to be every single night, and it's a difficult task, but tonight I thought you saw the best version of what he is on both ends of the floor and ... that's the Jordan that we need," said Mazzulla, per CLNS Media.

What Walsh is showing is that not only does he deserve to stick around, but he can play a meaningful part in their ability to return to championship contention.