CHARLOTTE — Hornets guard Terry Rozier remembers what he helped build in Boston.
Drafted sixteenth overall by the Celtics in the 2015 NBA Draft, Rozier was then joined by a pair of franchise-altering lottery picks — Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum — in back-to-back years, 2016 and 2017, respectively — which changed the franchise’s trajectory for the foreseeable future. Starting for an injured Kyrie Irving while averaging 16.5 points, 5.7 assists, 5.3 rebounds, and 1.3 steals per game throughout the 2018 playoffs, ‘Scary Terry’ will be forever revered by Celtics fans as the third-year guard who stepped in and nearly guided a shorthanded Celtics team to the NBA Finals.
Without Irving and Gordon Hayward, Boston came up short in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. Still, Terry made a good impression on Hornets GM and president of basketball operations Mitch Kupchak. And in 2019, Rozier agreed to a sign-and-trade with the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for Kemba Walker and a 2020 second-round draft pick.
Now, as one of the team’s distinguished veterans who’s nearly four years removed from being traded by Boston, Rozier says he’s still striving to become a better player — which should always be the goal, according to Terry, no matter where a player is in his career.
“It’s always to get better no matter how old (you are) in this league, how many years you’ve put in. There are always ways to get better,” Rozier told CLNS Media on Monday before playing his former team. “Come in every day with the right attitude cause, you know, around a lot of young guys, things (are) contagious. You come in with bad attitudes and stuff, especially with how things have been going on with us this season — a lot of injuries and with our record — you come in with a bad attitude it kind of rubs off of guys. Just keeping my head high and making everybody believe that (expletive) could still turn around.”
The 11-34 Hornets have the worst record in the Eastern Conference. After losing to the Celtics — 130-118 — on Martin Luther King Day, they stretched their losing streak to five straight. However, Terry’s play of late has boosted averages of 24.4 points while shooting at a 49% clip throughout January — which he hopes will inspire his teammates and lead to winning basketball.
“I didn’t start the year how I wanted to,” Rozier said. “But, you know, it’s a long season. I’ve been in this league for eight years. I know how things change. So, just staying down, waiting for my time but obviously, I want to win more than anything. So, hopefully, things can turn around.”
For Terry, pulling off the unexpected is always achievable. Very few envisioned he was talented enough to lead a Celtics team without its All-Star point guard to being one win shy of reaching the NBA Finals. Rozier, who was 23 then, was relentless and hasn’t changed.
That tenacious approach to the game led him and the Hornets to agree to a three-year, $58 million contract in 2019 in exchange for Kemba. Then came a four-year, $97 million extension in 2021 ahead of his eighth season in the NBA.
“It’s a blessing. I try to rub off on the guys and make sure they know that (expletive) — not everybody can play in the league (for) eight years,” Rozier added. “This thing goes fast. We have a great locker room. I was fortunate enough to come in, get drafted by the Celtics, and see a lot of great things and learn a lot of great things I can take with me in my career. I’m just blessed, man. Hopefully, the eight turns into sixteen.”
While reminiscing about his time in Boston, Rozier smiles when he thinks about his first few seasons playing with a young Jaylen and Jayson, two of the Celtics franchise’s main pillars that have blossomed into the best scoring duo in the association.
“When I first got drafted to the Celtics, we was building to where they’re at right now,” Rozier said. “We did a lot of things to build, but I feel like the Celtics have found their way (led) by Jayson and Jaylen, you know, my young boys. So, I’m just glad to see that. I’m glad to see that. They put the work in since day one, and they deserve everything. They deserve everything that they got coming, and hopefully, they can win them one. I’m cheering for them, for sure.”
For Terry, it is no surprise that Brown and Tatum have elevated Boston into a championship contender.
“I feel like all the years from when I first came in, we built all of this for them to be where they’re at right now, and they’re taking it full force,” Rozier added. “I respect them for that.”
While Rozier was starting a new chapter with the Hornets, Walker leading the 2019-20 Celtics was an instant success. Boston went 11-4 in their first fifteen games, including a ten-game win streak before a left knee injury suffered mid-season plagued his production and ultimately derailed his tenure in Boston.
Kemba played in 56 games during the regular season and 17 playoff games throughout the 2019-20 campaign — which saw the Celtics lose in Game 6 of their best-of-7 Eastern Conference finals series against the Miami Heat. And after playing in only 56 of the allotted 72 games throughout the 2020-21 shortened season and losing to the Brooklyn Nets in five games of their first-round playoff series, Walker was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder along with the 16th pick in the 2021 Draft for Al Horford, Moses Brown and a 2023 second-round draft pick.
Before Boston traded for Kemba after Kyrie agreed to a whopping four-year, $136.4 million max deal with the Nets, some Celtics fans vouched for Rozier to be handed the keys to the offense via a new contract extension. At the time, however, no one considered Kemba, who had only missed six games in four years from 2015-19, injury prone, and enlisting a three-year All-Star veteran in Walker over a 24-year-old standout in Rozier to lead a team with championship aspirations felt like the better option for Boston.
However, what if the Celtics went with Terry instead?
“Nah, I’m not a what-if person,” Rozier replied with a smile. “God makes everything happen for a reason. It’s a blessing, though; it’s a blessing for sure.”
Terry’s happy with how everything’s played and says he wouldn’t change a thing.
“Them my brothers,” Rozier added. “Just (seeing) them, that’s good enough for me. Obviously, I’m here in Charlotte, but they still my brothers. We still talk and stuff like that. So, it still feels like I’m a part of it.”
