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Boston Celtics player report card 2017-18: Daniel Theis

By Jason Haskins

NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 24: Daniel Theis #27 of the Boston Celtics reacts to a call in the second half against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on February 24,2018 in New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 24: Daniel Theis #27 of the Boston Celtics reacts to a call in the second half against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on February 24,2018 in New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /
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The rookie season of Daniel Theis was cut short, but the power forward for the Boston Celtics has a promising career ahead of him.

Compared to other rookies, Boston Celtics power forward Daniel Theis had a later start in the NBA than your standard first-year players.

Helping him along, the rookie was surrounded by veterans such as Al Horford, Aron Baynes and Marcus Morris. Their leadership would hopefully allow Theis’ game to grow while playing 10-15 minutes per game.

Finding playing time almost immediately, Theis was well on his way to being a major contributor for the Celtics come playoff time. He was consistently playing 20 minutes per game (or more) and fit into Boston’s rotation like an old pro.

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A torn meniscus changed all of that.

March 11 would turn out to be the last on-court action of the 2017-18 season for the rookie out of Germany. It was a season that saw Theis continually improve, in which each game he showed off some new skills.

All told, Theis finished the season by playing in 63 games. He put up 5.3 points and 4.3 rebounds per game. Theis shot 54.1% from the field and even knocked down 18 3-pointers.

Aptly suited for the defensive scheme of the Celtics, Theis also contributed 48 blocked shots while giving Boston valuable minutes off of the bench (plus three starts).

2017-18 season highlights

It only took until the fourth game of the season for Theis to show what he was capable of.

In a 110-89 victory over the New York Knicks, he scored 11 points and pulled down 5 boards while playing 21 minutes.

At 26 years old, Theis had his fair share of professional experience in the German leagues. He wouldn’t put up the above-mentioned numbers on a game-to-game basis, but he was consistent enough to stay in the rotation.

February was by far the best month in Theis’ first season. He averaged 7.4 points per game while shooting 58.3% from the floor. In a victory over the Detroit Pistons, Theis shot 8-10 (80%) in scoring 19 points and collecting 7 rebounds.

Theis notched a couple of double-doubles in his first year. He had 10 points and 10 rebounds in a victory over the Sacramento Kings in November. Later, a few days before Christmas, Theis had 10 points and 15 rebounds in a win against the Chicago Bulls.

Overall, Theis finished with double-digits in rebounds in five games and did the same with points in nine games.

2017-18 final grade

Boston Celtics. DANIEL THEIS. Incomplete. . PF

A good, solid bench player can sometimes be hard to come by. Theis was well on his way to earning likely a ‘B’ for the season before missing the last 15 regular season games.

Theis will be heading into the second year of a two-year contract he signed in July of 2017. Only three players on the roster last season made less than Theis did, but he played like the top-eight rotation player he turned out to be.

Hopefully he’ll bounce back strong and continue to thrive in Boston. Theis may not be a star in this league, but he’s the type of player who can make a career out of playing 20-25 minutes per game.

Next: Boston Celtics: Top 5 draft busts

The Celtics will be wise to hold onto Theis. Because we all know for every star on your team you need a role player to do the dirty work. And Theis can be exactly that guy.

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