BOSTON — In a sign of his current status on the Celtics roster, Lonnie Walker changed in the middle of the home locker room late Sunday night. Like the other players without guaranteed contracts, he does not have a locker at TD Garden. Some of his possessions, including a book titled “Dare to Lead,” sat on the floor across the room. Jokingly, he called out to a group of people to be careful of his belongings on the ground nearby.
Walker, a first-round pick in 2018, did not expect to be fighting for a roster spot at age 25. Now that he is, after signing a non-guaranteed contract with the Celtics in August, he calls this his basketball version of rock bottom. He could resent the situation, but after scoring 20 points in a 115-111 win against the Raptors, he stressed how grateful he is for the transformation it has spurred within him.
“What haven’t I learned?” Walker said.
Walker knows he is not promised to stick in Boston. The Celtics have been up-front with him about that. He understands he could land in the G League, a development he never thought he would see. He said the reality of his contract situation forced him to look hard at himself and his habits. Regardless of whether he secures a more permanent place on the Celtics, he believes he will benefit from this point of his career.
“This is one of the first times that in the league I’ve dealt with this type of experience and this type of adversity,” Walker said. “And I’m really embracing the whole emotional, mental and physical aspect of it, of just giving it my all. It really has been showing me just what type of man I truly am in the midst of the fire. And just appreciating it all, being very humble. I’ve always been a humble person but this is keeping me grounded and understanding that there’s so much more to the game that I have to provide and consistently prove to get to where I want to get to.”
Walker capitalized on the chance to play significant minutes over two preseason games this weekend, averaging 14.5 points, four assists and 2.5 rebounds per game in wins against the 76ers and Raptors.
After only seeing action late in the first two preseason games, when the Boston regulars were already sitting, Walker played substantial time next to some of the team’s usual rotation players over the weekend. He looked good in that role both nights, following up a nine-point, seven-assist, four-rebound outing against Philadelphia by scoring 20 points on 8-for-15 shooting against Toronto. With all of the Celtics’ regular starters resting Sunday on the second leg of the back-to-back, Walker started against the Raptors and scored eight points over the first six minutes.
The 6-foot-4 wing averaged 9.7 points per game last season for the Nets while shooting 38.4 percent on 3-point attempts. He has averaged in double figures in scoring during three of his six NBA seasons. He believes teams know he can put the ball in the basket but want to see him do more than that.
Lonnie Walker with two early 3s here at the TD Garden. You know Joe Mazzulla loves to see it. #Celtics pic.twitter.com/g5gtDEvph8
— The Celtics Files (@CelticsFiles) October 13, 2024
That’s why, in Boston, he has looked to follow Jrue Holiday and Derrick White. Walker hopes to impact games more like they do on both sides of the court. He wants to prove he can defend at a higher level. He wants to show he can be a more willing passer.
Walker doesn’t just want to improve on the court. Earlier in his career, he said he would always have friends around and would sometimes hang out with them when he could have spent time at the gym. He said he now intends to avoid all such distractions. He believes his new work habits will pay dividends.
“I’m not doing nothing else but basketball,” Walker said. “I’m not chilling with the homies. I’m not doing anything. I’m literally in the gym at 7 a.m. I’m one of the first people in the gym. I’m one of the last people out. I’m routine-based. Recovery-wise, I’m doing every little thing. I’m doing deep cold plunges early in the morning before I start my day. Things that I haven’t done that are uncomfortable.
“And I’ve finally found myself comfortable in an uncomfortable situation. And that’s just a testament to myself and who I am as a person. So it’s just been an everlasting aspect of just growth on how to be a professional, how to enjoy this so that when the time comes or when everything aligns, I know that I’m going to be more mentally and physically prepared for all the outcomes because of this moment.”
Coach Joe Mazzulla said Walker has been “really good” during his short time with the Celtics.
“I think it’s an adjustment coming here because it’s just a different style of basketball, and I like his open-mindedness to learning,” Mazzulla said. “I like his patience. It’s funny when you get a guy like him who’s been in the league for seven years.
“I saw some things from him (during Saturday’s win against Philadelphia) that he might not think are important, or other people won’t, but they’re really, really important things, defensively and then offensively. Whether it was his positioning or whether it was a small cut that he made or a read that he made, those things go a long way because they open up opportunities. They may be things that have been taken for granted. But he was efficient, 4 out of 7, and some of the stuff that doesn’t show up on the stat (sheet), he picked up on, and it was great to see that.”
Rock bottom is bad, but Walker is trying to turn his into a positive.
“It was time to just look in the mirror and say, ‘Yo, Lonnie, what do you need to do? Where are you at mentally? Where are you at physically? What are you doing that is making you not have any excuses or whatever it might be?’” Walker said. “Having something like this is kind of like facing your fears. I’ve gotta give it my all. I’ve gotta sacrifice everything that I’ve got whether it’s spending time with friends, eating habits, sleeping, working out, recovery, like, everything I have to be a professional and sacrifice everything I get in order to get to where I want to get to.
“I wonder, ‘What can I really become in this league? What is the best self that I can provide?’ You never really know until you put all your marbles on the floor.”
(Top photo of Lonnie Walker passing the ball in preseason action against the Raptors: China Wong / Getty Images)
