Gordon Hayward: I’ve worked harder than any summer I’ve ever had


A smile we hope to see more of this season. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports

Is it opening night yet? I’m beyond ready for tip off, especially after reading Gordon Hayward’s latest blog post. I could practically quote the whole thing and you’d have enjoyable content, but I’ll pick out some of the points that excited me most.


Like every Boston Celtic that provided a quote this off-season, Hayward is ready to put last season behind him. Thank goodness. The bad taste from last season has been motivation for him all summer - a summer in which he spent most of it working with Celtics staff in Boston.

Hayward didn’t totally dismiss last season, however. While being proud of his ability to return from his gruesome injury, Hayward also felt like his game slowly progressed throughout last season. He goes on to say that he played his best ball at the end of season which I tend to agree with.



Gordon discusses the mental gymnastics that he went through. As a viewer of him last season, you could certainly pick up on his lack of confidence. Who could blame him? Rather than hoping things would be okay versus knowing things will be okay has put him in a place where “now, the reins are off.” He’s 100% healthy and has gotten that confidence back. And I’m ready through run through a wall at this point.

One thing that overlaps Gordon’s confidence is his ability to be a leader. He wants to show more emotion on and off the court this year. He sees an opportunity to step up as a leader. Again, you could see a player that had a lot going on between his ears last season so he seemed to struggle in this area. If he doesn’t have to think about his game too much and just play like he knows how, I think we’ll be able to see it in the way he carries himself on the court and with his teammates.

 Photo: Dan Chiara/USA Sports
Hayward also touched on some of the new additions to the team. He mentions knowing Kemba Walker for awhile now. He highlights Kemba’s quickness and ability to get into the lane, which will open up the game for Hayward. Boy, I can’t wait to see how these two look together.

 Enes Kanter also made an appearance in the blog post. Gordon speaks to Kanter’s post moves and elite offensive rebounding. Being teammates for three years for the Utah Jazz, Gordon let’s everyone know that Kanter has the making of a fan favorite. I think we’ve already gotten that hint, GH.


Hayward goes a little “rah-rah” at the end, which if the rest wasn’t positive enough, gets you ready to dig out your Celtics pajamas. Let’s get excited:

I’m ready to be the player I came here to be.

That’s my focus. That and raising a banner at the Garden.

I’m going to be ready to go. We’re going to be ready to go.

So, is it October 23rd yet?
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