By admin 
When given his first shot to beat Los Angeles on Wednesday night, Celtics rookie Jordan Walsh didn’t waste it.
The 19-year-old forward scored 17 of his game-high 25 points in the second half as Boston rallied from a double-digit halftime deficit to defeat the archrival Lakers 95-90.
Just before halftime, the Ce
Walsh let up a guttural yell of pleasure shortly after hitting a 3-pointer at the 5:03 mark, which gave Boston its first lead since the opening minutes. And so they did, taking a 73-70 lead into the fourth quarter.
Outstanding 3rd quarter from Jordan Walsh, who helped the Celtics turn a 10-point halftime deficit into a 3-point lead heading into the 4th.@jordanwalshlife's 3Q highlights:
12 PTS (4-6 FG, 2-4 3P, 2-2 FT)
2 REB, 1 AST, 1 STL, +13 pic.twitter.com/kwp0FbI35l— Taylor Snow (@taylorcsnow) July 13, 2023
ltics trailed by as many as 14 points. Walsh then ignited them in the first five minutes of the third quarter, scoring 12 points during a 17-5 Celtics rally.
“It’s all been part of the game plan,” Walsh said of his team’s third-quarter surge in an ESPN interview between the final two frames. “Boston is known for being tough, for fighting, and that’s exactly what we’re doing now.” At halftime, we collected our team. ‘Hey, being down 10 at halftime is nothing,’ we assured them. Let’s push through it and get the dub.”
Boston fought hard all the way through the fourth quarter, leading by as many as eight points before walking away with its first Summer League victory in Las Vegas. Walsh put the finishing touches on the victory with a powerful slam with 15 seconds remaining.
A Positive View of Williams
Brad Stevens joined the ESPN team for a six-minute segment in the first quarter, when he discussed a number of offseason topics. The health of Rob Williams was perhaps the most notable topic, which Stevens spoke about with beaming optimism.
17-5 Celtics run warrants a Walsh Roar 🔊 pic.twitter.com/crTAV728I0
— Taylor Snow (@taylorcsnow) July 13, 2023
As we all know, Williams has had a few difficult offseasons over his career, most recently last summer when he had to have knee surgery, which held him out for the first 29 games of the regular season. When he returned in mid-December, the veteran center appeared to be in good shape (apart from a hamstring ailment that caused him to miss eight games in March) and cruised through the playoffs with a perfect 20-game attendance.
According to Boston’s president of basketball operations, all of Williams’ second-half playing time does not appear to have caused any wear and tear on his knee, and the big man is feeling the healthiest he has in a long time.
“He had a really good second half, and we’re hoping to build off of that,” Stevens said. “He hasn’t had a summer of good health in a long time, but he feels great right now.” So we’re excited to see how he builds on that.”