The Boston Celtics appear to like what they've seen from rookie Jordan Walsh so far this summer.
Walsh, selected 38th overall by the C's in the 2023 NBA Draft, is signing a four-year contract worth $7.6 million with Boston, according to HoopsHype's Michael Scotto. The final year of the deal will include a team option, per Spotrac's Keith Smith.
The Celtics officially announced the signing of the 6-foot-7 wing on Thursday evening.
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Walsh was the Celtics' only selection in the 2023 draft. The 19-year-old struggles with his shot but has earned a reputation as a terrific defensive player. His coach at Arkansas, Eric Musselman, told our Chris Forsberg on a recent Celtics Talk Podcast that Walsh is a "violent defender" who could "take a premier scorer out of the game."
"That’s what he did at the college level, where we could assign him to a top player on the other team and then not have to give any help," Musselman told Forsberg. "So he's a great lockdown defender, individually, and then off the ball.
"He's a great loose-ball getter. He rebounds out of his area, defensively. So it just gives you a lot of different things from a defense perspective. And, most importantly, he allows the coaching staff to have versatility in their defensive game plans because of his ability to jump passing lanes and create some offense through defense."
Boston Celtics
Walsh has been practicing with the C's at the Auerbach Center in preparation for Summer League action. He'll make his unofficial Celtics debut Saturday at 3 p.m. ET vs. the Miami Heat.