In his first few weeks in Boston, Xavier Tillman has mostly sat back and watched. A natural leader, Tillman became one of the louder voices in a Grizzlies locker room where being 25-years-old and a fourth-year NBA player classified him as a veteran.
In Boston, he joins a roster headlined by older, established players who have been there before, like 37-year-old Al Horford and 33-year-old Jrue Holiday. As one of the new guys, he’s opted to take it all in as he figures out the team’s offensive and defensive schemes, and gets acclimated to the new environment.
Horford — long known for mentoring younger players — has helped Tillman find his place on the team in his early days with the Celtics, the new acquisition told NBC Sport Boston’s Chris Forsberg earlier this week.