The key to success for veteran wing Gordon Hayward of the Boston Celtics is health.

Hayward, now 29 years old, missed pretty much all of the 2017-18 season after he fractured his tibia landing awkwardly in his first game in green. Last season, however, took many minutes for the former Utah Jazz star to feel comfortable for head coach Brad Stevens and on the hardwood.

Here's what the 6-foot-8 wing had to say about his offseason (via Erikas Polockas in TalkBasket.net):

Reps is what gives you confidence, so being able to do things over and over and over and not worry about how my ankle’s feeling, or having to be cautious with it, has been really good, especially for my confidence.

I think last year was a lot of hoping and not really knowing what was going to happen just because I didn’t have the reps … going into a summer training as hard as I want to, it’s a lot better for my confidence this year and expectations-wise as well,” Hayward said.

Hayward also preached the importance of working with Boston's staff in the offseason in a video shared by the team's official Twitter account while talking to reporters on Tuesday afternoon.

This past summer was the first, full-length and extended period Hayward had, while healthy, to practice on his game.

The 10-year pro will not be the longest-tenured Celtic under Stevens—that distinction goes to guard Marcus Smart—but he has been the longest player on the Celtics to play in the NBA.

With that comes experience in handling his body and workouts.