Coming into the 2019 season, the Boston Celtics backcourt was a reason for concern. Despite preseason criticism, Enes Kanter is one of only four players in Celtics history with 100 plus offensive rebounds in 35 games, is propelling the Celtics as major contenders in the Eastern Conference.
Brad Stevens said post-game, Monday night that the Celtics have had a few guys out, and he wants to “see if we can play well for a sustained period. There’s still a lot of unknown, it’s just one game. We’re not going to overreact.”
Coming off of a dominating 139-107 performance over the Los Angeles Lakers, Kanter polished off recent concerns against the Celtics arch-rival. The Celtics center said it was “like a playoff game.” Playing 24 minutes, Kanter added 18 points and 11 rebounds off of the bench. Kanter shot 80 percent in the game, and most of his points came down low in the post.
“[He’s] excellent at offensive rebounds. Our guards benefit Kanter, by driving so there’s a lot of dump-offs,” said head coach Brad Stevens. Post-game, Stevens expressed that Kanter does a great job of taking advantage of his chances.
“Shoot the ball with confidence. If you miss, I’ve got your back.”@EnesKanter has controlled the offensive boards all season and now he’s breaking down how he does it. pic.twitter.com/1qqqnIS3D5
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) January 22, 2020
Helping with the depth, Kanter’s bench play of late, including his rebounding on both ends, has made it challenging on opposing defenders. “He’s great. He’s one of the best at getting that position, and everyone else’s speed opens it up,” said Stevens. Taking the humbled road, Kanter gave credits to his teammates after his performance. “We had a tough stretch before this game. We needed to learn from our mistakes. We came out with the right mindset and did our job,” said Kanter.
Starting center Daniel Theis’s impact on Kanter shouldn’t go without notice. “I want to give a huge shoutout to Daniel Theis. Not everything is about the box score,” said Kanter. Playing the same position and competing for playing time doesn’t create a rift amongst Kanter and Theis. Kanter gave a nod to Theis’s ability to rotate, contest, and switch. Kanter says he tries to follow Theis’s ways.
The unsung hero for the Celtics last night: @EnesKanter who controlled the glass and got 11 rebounds (six on the offense) to go with 18 points.
Full highlights: https://t.co/AdTYgajcAQ pic.twitter.com/zK0CBc4KiI
— Tomek Kordylewski (@Timi_093) January 21, 2020
Building off of his four double-doubles in January alone, Kanter dropped his seventh double-double of the season Monday night and continued to be a very reliable option off of the Celtics bench.
Kanter will look to continue his successful stretch as the Celtics battle the Grizzlies Wednesday night at the TD Garden.
