BOSTON — Nikola Vučević’s acclimation with the Celtics picked up Wednesday night.
Since acquiring him ahead of last week’s NBA trade deadline, Boston has largely operated as usual. Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla has continued to start Neemias Queta at center, bringing Vučević off the bench in each of his first three games with the team. There has been no indication that the approach will change, but when the moment called for an unexpected adjustment against his old team, Vučević was ready.
“I think
tonight was a good step forward of where we can get to,” Vučević said after Boston’s 124-105 blowout win over the Bulls. “I felt more comfortable out there, and I think the guys felt more comfortable around me, and we were able to build some good chemistry, so it’s a good step forward. I’m glad we got the win, so we’ll just continue to work on it.”
Vučević picked up the slack for Queta in the first quarter after an ankle injury sent Boston’s go-to five hobbling up and down the floor and briefly into the player’s tunnel. Although Queta quickly returned, he logged just 15 minutes, giving Vučević his first major chance to make a significant impact.
Both the Celtics and Vučević used their matchup against his former team as a stepping stone. With Queta recovering on the bench using a resistance band, Boston adjusted on the fly, putting a greater emphasis on Vučević’s aggressiveness. He responded by knocking down four 3-pointers — his most in a Celtics uniform — and finished with 19 points and 11 rebounds, notching his second double-double in a comfortable, kick-your-feet-up pouncing of Anfernee Simons and the Bulls.
Upon arriving from Chicago after his trade was finalized, the 35-year-old Vučević quickly got to work — studying film and meeting with coaches and staff at the team’s practice facility to get up to speed. Still, nothing compares to on-the-job training, and for Vučević, that’s where the real growth and comfort come from.
Playing 26 minutes while filling a critical void allowed for that comfort to kick in.
“Before that, I had gone through shootaround with the coaches, and there were a lot of one-on-ones,” he said. “Even in the day in between, when I took some time off and watched tape — trying to learn the plays a little bit more — I felt like I’ve settled in a bit better.”
For the first time, Vučević thrived on the perimeter. The Celtics toyed with Chicago’s fragile defense and imposed their will. Teammates found Vučević in the paint and beyond the arc, turning their finale before the All-Star break into an opportunity to showcase his offensive versatility to the TD Garden crowd while also giving Queta a breather.
When asked how different Vučević looked Wednesday night compared to his first two games with the Celtics, Mazzulla echoed Vučević’s sentiment — nearly word-for-word.
“Much more comfortable today,” Mazzulla said. “His pick-and-roll positioning defensively was good — really good. Then offensively, the reads were good — spacing, understanding where he is, the early offense reads, offensive execution. He just felt much more comfortable out there, so it’s always good to get out and practice. He values the details and wants to get it right, so he’s put a lot of preparation into it.”
Finding his place in Boston’s offense isn’t immediate. It takes time to develop, as was the case when Simons first joined Mazzulla’s locker room in the offseason. After debuting with the Celtics last Friday, Vučević called his first game a “work in progress,” a process that will continue as the team pushes to secure a strong position in the Eastern Conference standings ahead of the playoffs.
The next seven days won’t just serve as a break for everyone in the locker room except Jaylen Brown — they’ll give Vučević valuable time to continue learning the ways of Celtics basketball without juggling the hectic pace of flights, meet-and-greets, and limited hours before hitting the court. Even with 15 years of NBA experience, Vučević knows that joining a contender like Boston requires work on and off the floor to bring the organization’s vision to life, so he plans on using the off-time wisely.
“I think the (break) could help a little bit,” Vučević said. “There’s a lot that comes with a trade — you come to a whole new city, a whole new situation — so I think the (break) will do some good. It gives me more time to study, watch film and see some things, then refresh for the end of the year. All of us players look forward to the break at this point of the season, but I do think it was good to finish on a positive note and go into it feeling pretty good.”
