BOSTON — When Neemias Queta was announced as a starter for the second straight game, this time against the Warriors on Wednesday, the news didn‘t come as a surprise. The big man was signed to a two-way deal just last season, but here he is starting for the defending champs as he’s earned those opportunities with his recent strong play . Queta wasn’t perfect in his second-ever starting opportunity, but he certainly made loud impacts throughout the night.
The big man finished with 14 points and eight rebounds in his 28 minutes, injecting energy in spurts. The Celtics still fell 118-112 to the Warriors at the end , but the Queta production continues to be a positive. “He’s doing a good job just understanding tendencies,” C’s coach Joe Mazzulla said.
“I thought he’s doing a good job executing the coverages that we have. So he’s just getting better and better at understanding what the scheme is and kind of what the tendencies are and then just the situational basketball of making reads on the defensive end. So he’s definitely growing.
” Queta represents a crucial edge the Celtics have over other teams in recent years: player development. It‘s not just Queta who’s an important member of the rotation — look at guys like Payton Pritchard, Sam Hauser, Luke Kornet and more. Those contributors are either homegrown players or developed their way to this point in their careers.
And that‘s a big advantage as the C’s can find the right guys to not only fit.
