Last year, Brad Wanamaker of the Boston Celtics received little playing time and played just a few games. In the upcoming 2019-20 season, Wanamaker has his eyes locked on a regular spot in the rotation.
Last season, the 30-year-old played averaged just 9.5 minutes per game in 36 contests. As a 6-foot-4 guard, Wanamaker was the third-stringer behind Kyrie Irving and Terry Rozier — both of which have moved elsewhere. As such, Wanamaker sees this as an opportunity to be part of Brad Stevens' rotation. But he knows that he won't be a shoo-in as he has to work hard to earn it:
“I want to show that I can play with this team and on this level and be a rotation guy,” he said, per A. Sherrod Blakey of NBC Sports.
“You have to come in ready from the jump, show what you can do to earn the opportunity (to play),” Wanamaker said. “If you don’t show what you can do, how can they give you an opportunity?”
He averaged pretty decent numbers given his limited playing time: 3.9 points, 1.6 assists and 1.1 rebounds per game. He made 47.6 percent of his shots from the field and 41.0 percent from 3-point range. He noted that last year was tough for the team as they underperformed. This year, he's taking on an optimistic attitude.
“I see a bright upside for me here. I wanted to come back and do it again.”
Time can only tell if Wanamaker makes the cut or not. But he sounds more determined than ever to land the spot. And sometimes, that's all a player needs to succeed.
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