Brad Wanamaker has career night against Mavericks

Brad Wanamaker set career highs across the board in the Celtics 114-93 win over the Mavericks on Friday night.

Relegated to mop-up duty for most of his first NBA season, Wanamaker entered the game with three minutes left in the first quarter and immediately made an impact. He was responsible for an 8-0 run himself to close the quarter (1 assist, 2-2 3PM) that extended the Celtics’ lead to 11. Wanamaker finished with eight points on 3-6 shooting with four assists, two rebounds and three steals in 22 minutes. The points, assists, steals and minutes were all career highs.

Wanamaker is the fifth guard for Brad Stevens’ team behind starters Kyrie Irving and Jaylen Brown and subs Terry Rozier and Marcus Smart. With Irving missing his second straight game because of an eye injury, Wanamaker took advantage.

On the strength of his performance, he could be in for big minutes if any of the top four misses any significant time. Either that or Rozier or Smart is traded, which is something that seems to be brought up weekly, particularly Rozier. Time will tell, but this game should help build Wanamaker’s confidence and the coaching staff’s trust in him.

Hail to Pitt.