Robert Williams gained a tremendous amount of praise, and deservedly so, for his 10-point, nine-rebound, nine-block performance off the bench in Game 1 of Boston’s first-round matchup with the Brooklyn Nets. However, he wasn’t the only Celtics reserve who provided outstanding energy during the 104-93 loss.
Jabari Parker stepped up as well and delivered a strong, nine-point, four-rebound, one-assist, one-block effort. During his 22 minutes of action, the Celtics outscored Brooklyn by seven points; without him on the court, they were outscored by 18.
While Parker's performance flew a bit more under the radar than that of Williams, it certainly wasn’t lost on his teammates, who say that the veteran wing was a difference-maker in helping to keep them in the game.
“I felt his energy was great,” Kemba Walker reflected following practice Sunday afternoon. “His attention to detail, everything we wanted and talked about in the scouting report, he did it. And he was great.”
Walker specifically noted how great of an offensive threat Parker can be in driving to the basket, which is essential in helping Boston fill the void of Jaylen Brown.
“He kind of poses a different threat for us,” said Walker. “He can get downhill. He can post. He can pass out of the post. He’s smart. He’s been around. It’s good to have him. I’m happy he made that impact last night because it was a really strong impact. Hopefully, he can continue that.”
Parker has often been praised for his offensive impact over the years, but Brad Stevens made sure to highlight the importance of his defensive presence as well.
“I think one of the things when you start thinking about how you're going to guard (Kevin) Durant and (James) Harden and the bigs and all that stuff, and obviously (Kyrie) Irving, but we did a lot of switching. So obviously Jabari has real size and he's long. I thought he did a good job today on both ends.”
To see Parker perform well in so many areas was encouraging, considering how he has played an unpredictable role since joining the Celtics. At first, Parker played significant minutes following his signing in mid-April, as he appeared in six straight games while helping to fill the void of a few injured teammates. However, he then registered six DNPs over Boston’s next eight games as it gained some of those healthy bodies back.
Then in the final two games of the regular season, Parker found his way back into the rotation. During the second-to-last game of the season against Minnesota, he tallied nine points in 17 minutes. And then during the regular-season finale, he erupted for a season-high 18 points in 27 minutes.
Those last two games, coupled with a few practice sessions leading up to the playoffs, likely helped Parker grow more comfortable within a system that’s entirely new to him. And to see it pay off was rewarding for everyone involved.
“Jabari played amazing for us, especially for a guy who is coming in for something that is new for him,” said Marcus Smart. “The chemistry, we're trying to build with him, it's not all the way there, but he's coming in and giving it everything he has. He's learning, he's a great player and he helped us. We're proud of him and we just got to keep going.”
What has kept Parker going through this past month of adapting to a new team has been his steadfast work ethic and his even-keeled approach.
“They always taught me, never be too high, never be too low,” Parker said. “The only thing that I can control is my effort and my hard work. I know good things will happen that way.”
Behind that approach, good things happened for Parker in Game 1. And they should continue to happen as long as he maintains such a mindset.
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