Xavier Tillman's Celtics debut is more than just a fun story

The Boston Celtics defeated the Dallas Mavericks on Friday night. Jayson Tatum (32 points) took over in the second half, Jaylen Brown (25 points) quietly dominated on both ends, and Kristaps Porzingis (24 points) was firing on all cylinders from the jump.

All of our players have continued to put up those numbers throughout the season. It's as if fans are numb to their greatness. And on Friday, a shiny new object appeared that stole a fair share of the attention.

But in this case, the shiny object may turn out to be gold.

Xavier Tillman played in his first game since joining the Celtics ahead of the trade deadline. He scored some runs in the second and fourth quarters, and while his box score totals don't jump off the page, his performance certainly raised some eyebrows.

“X looked good out there,” Jaylen Brown said. “He seems like a good fit. He came in right away, contributed defensively, got some rebounds, got some stops. And offensively, I think he has a good feel for the game. I understand this.

“He's a good screen setter. He's got big hands, so I was able to find him on the baseline a few times and hit some seam passes, and he was able to read the defense and how they were guarding him. Tonight. X seemed to be doing really well.”

Tillman finished the night with six points, one rebound, two assists and one block on 3-of-3 field goals, but it was everything in between that jumped out.

Almost every statistic he recorded told a deeper story.

His first score of the game was the result of some impressive defense from Luka Doncic. Tillman stuck with the Mavericks' star and made him swing the ball, rewarding him with a transition bucket after a Jrue Holiday steal.

The 25-year-old big man never thought he would play, but he was hustling from the moment he touched the floor. And while he would have liked to have gotten a nifty penny off Jayson Tatum, he was overall happy with his play.

“I certainly didn't know. I had no idea,” Tillman said with a smile. “We just had no clue. I felt like the proceedings went well. I feel like we did well offensively. [and] Defensively.

“That pass that JT threw, somebody touched it and I wish they had paid a little more attention to it. They probably would have caught it and finished it off. But other than that, I feel like I did a pretty good job. .”

It was in the fourth quarter that Tillman's impact truly began to shine.

With 7:40 left in the game, the Mavericks were sprinting down the floor. Boston's lead was up to 18 points, but Dallas was still ready to fight.

Kyrie Irving pushed the pace, but Tillman cut him at the rim and forced him to kick the ball into the corner. Dallas swung it out and found Doncic at the top of the key, who drove it to Tillman and dumped the ball to Irving.

In an impressive double effort, Tillman stopped Doncic before pivoting to Irving and recording a block. Boston had the ball, and Tillman's influence continued on offense.

He was forced into the corner as Al Horford was double-teamed in the post. Tillman walked under the hoop, received a pass from Horford, and immediately sent a pass to corner Peyton Pritchard, who made the corner 3.

But what's most impressive about this play is Tillman's foresight. Not only did he find Pritchard in the corner, he told him to go there before the possession unfolded. When Tillman was about to sink under the hoop, he motioned for Pritchard to slide down.

This was his first appearance outside of garbage time for the Celtics, but the time he spent watching Boston play helped prepare him for a very impactful time against Dallas.

“In other words, [observing helped] There are a lot of them,” Tillman said. “It helps me find my rhythm, get more comfortable faster. Whereas I'm just going out there and trying to figure it out. I feel like I know what's going to happen because I've been watching it all my life. .”

And after just a few plays of a block-to-assist sequence, Tillman maintained dimer status.

He set a screen on Brown and immediately rolled over to catch the pass. Maxi Kleber did his best to cut off all of Tillman's passing options, but the rookie floated the ball over his head and hit Horford for an alley-oop layup.

His comfort level off the ball and as a playmaker has the potential to open up many new offensive avenues for Boston, and his defensive hustle makes him a valuable asset in that regard as well.

As Tillman became accustomed to Boston, traffic and everything else, the Celtics picked him up and welcomed him into the new family.

“It was great. I got a chance to really learn from guys like Al, guys like Payton, guys like O'Shea,” Tillman said. “Like you said, it just helps us get used to how we want to operate and what the culture is like. When we're bringing the energy, everyone relaxes. When you’re doing it.”

At the same time, the coaching staff prepares him well for life on the court.

“after that [the] Like the coaching staff. [assistant coach] DJ MacLeay has been a real help to me,” Tillman said. “He helped me with plays, helped me with defensive schemes and all the other good things.”

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Brad Stevens said that when searching the market for potential trades, the Celtics were looking for a player who could play alongside Horford, Kristaps Porzingis and a one-big lineup. Tillman accomplished both feats against the Mavericks.

Meanwhile, Joe Mazzula noted that Boston wanted to avoid any move that would force a restart of the chemical construction process. Play on the court is important, but so is smooth operations behind the scenes.

But Tillman seems to be settling in well.

“It's really, really laid-back,” Tillman said of the Celtics' culture. “I think it’s a great place to be in terms of keeping basketball going.” basketball. It's different than making it your identity and allowing people to feel every emotion, but at the same time no one takes it home and no one dwells on it.

“Then you come to the venue the next day and you see that people are not stuck with past performances or anything like that, but they have a fresh face and everyone is in a good mood. That's what it means.”

It's too early to name Tillman as Boston's next legitimate rotation player, but there were plenty of big shots and flashy plays in this performance. Tillman always hustled, was always in the right position and impacted the game with his high basketball IQ.

All of them scream “possible Mazula favorite.”