Shaquille O’Neal had no clue who Baylor Scheierman is

Baylor Sherman In his second season, he plays with a team Celticsbut, apparently, ESPN’s Shaquille O’Neal wasn’t sure who Sherman was until he watched highlights of the Celtics’ win over the Cavaliers.

“I don’t even know who this kid is,” O’Neal said during a recent episode of the show. Inside the NBA. “I never let anyone named Baylor or Sherman score on me.” Sherman? Who is he playing for?

Sherman was a first-round pick in 2024. He has played in 59 games for Boston this season, starting 16 during Jayson Tatumabsence. He posted a 16-point, 10-rebound double-double on Sunday against the Cavaliers.

Joe Mazzola said of Sherman after Sunday’s game: “He’s just another link. He doesn’t care about starting, he doesn’t care about anything except competition. This doesn’t get enough awards, the competition and sponsorship factor. He doesn’t care anything about competing at the highest level and executing.”

“He takes a lot of pride in that. When you have a guy that never misses a beat no matter what his situation or the circumstances he’s in, you kind of see things like that. I think he does a great job of handling that.”

Sherman suffered a broken thumb last week, but that did not cause him to miss time. He’s shooting 38.9 percent from 3-point range this season, scoring 4.8 points per game in 16.5 minutes per game. He also averages 3.2 rebounds and 1.2 assists.

Tatum is two games away from returning, and so far, Sherman’s minutes have not decreased. He played 21 minutes against the Mavericks on Friday and 25 minutes against the Cavaliers on Sunday.

Tatum, who played 27 minutes in both games, said he is on a minutes restriction.

“It’s been smooth, I’d say,” Tatum said during a recent interview. interview on NBC Sports Boston. “I have a great relationship with most of the members of the group. I’ve played with most of these guys for a long time. A group of highly intelligent players. The hardest part for me is just limiting the minutes, and that [expletive] Disgusting, quite frankly.”

“That’s the hardest part, playing shorter periods and sitting longer than usual, but I understand the bigger picture.”

The Celtics have relied on Sherman, Jordan Walsh and Hugo Gonzalez to help out on the wings with Tatum out. The young trio has played three-quarters of the season without Tatum, allowing them to play more minutes than usual. Tatum returned on Friday and will likely see an increased workload as the season progresses.

The Celtics return to action Tuesday night against the Spurs. They will return to ESPN Wednesday, March 18 when they host the Golden State Warriors.

Khari A. Thompson

Sports reporter

Khary Thompson covers professional sports for Boston.com. Before joining the team in 2022, Khary covered college football for The Clarion Ledger in Jackson, Miss.

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