Boston Celtics Player Issues Wild Take on Going Up Against Jayson Tatum: ‘I’m going at his throat’

Boston Celtics rookie sounds off about challenging his star teammates in practice

As Walsh waits for the time when he will have a bigger role on the team, he is taking full advantage of the experience of practicing against Tatum and Brown. Gone are the days when he’s awestruck by his superstar teammates, though. For Walsh, it’s now all about sharpening his skills against some of the best in the league.

Via Souichi Terada of MassLive.com:

But as Walsh’s rookie season wraps up, he’s no longer the bright-eyed newcomer. Now, he’s trying to push Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown whenever they’re matched up against practice. And that’s part of the value the Celtics’ lone rookie can bring to an NBA Finals run even if he isn’t playing every night. As he so eloquently put it: “I’m here to kill you in practice. I don’t care who you are, I’m trying to kill. So that’s kind of the mentality I have.”

“If you put me against JT, I’m going at his throat,” Walsh added. “I’m trying to lock him up. Obviously him and JB, I play one-on-one with them. It’s just about always showing I’m a competitor, I’m never giving up. I don’t care who you are. I’m going to fight like hell to try and beat you in whatever we’re doing.”

Walsh spent a big chunk of the regular season in the G League, but he’s now in the NBA Finals with the Celtics, just being ready in the event his name gets called to enter the game. It’s unlikely that he gets to see meaningful minutes on the floor against Dallas if he’s even at all called from the bench, but it must still be quite a learning experience for the former Arkansas Razorbacks star.