Celtics team president Brad Stevens on why Boston added Xavier Tillman, Sr. and Jaden Springer

Oct 2, 2023; Boston, Celtics, USA; Boston Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens talks during Boston Celtics Media Day. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports

The Boston Celtics added a pair of defensive-minded players to the team’s roster at the NBA’s 2024 trade deadline, former Memphis Grizzlies big man Xavier Tillman, Sr. and ex-Philadelphia 76ers wing Jaden Springer. After the adds, Celtics team president Brad Stevens went on record to explain why Boston elected to trade for those two players specifically.

On Tillman, Stevens said via The Athletic’s Jay King that he “competes, he passes, thinks the game well” and that he has all “the stuff that we’ve been fortunate with the guys we have around our best players, that they brought to the table. He knows how to play. So we’re excited to have him.”

Springer, said Stevens, “is an athlete that can play athletically in the playoffs.”

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“But he also has a lot of growing to get better, and he’s committed to that,” suggested the Boston President of Basketball Operations.

“He’s got a long runway ahead. So we’ll see how this year shakes itself out for him. See how it all fits with the team. But he’s a guy that we believe in.”

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This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Celtics team president Brad Stevens on why Boston added Xavier Tillman, Sr. and Jaden Springer