BOSTON — As Neemias Queta strings together starts and gains some consistency, there are irreplaceable lessons that come from all these minutes: Experience. It’s Queta’s first time getting a starting role amid his breakout season — and there’s no better teacher than the grind of an NBA regular season.
Queta showed off that improvement in Wednesday’s blowout victory over the Pacers. Queta totaled five blocks, affecting shots all night at the rim. He also added 17 points and nine rebounds as the starting center spot is all Queta’s midway through the season.
“I feel like the repetition and consistently seeing different looks,” Queta said. “I don’t think much stuff is new anymore. So, just being able to figure out how to impact it depending on who’s attacking the rim and which guy I’m guarding as a second defender. Everything’s just becoming more clear for me and I’m getting better at it, at the end of the day. That’s the main thing.”
There were plenty of questions on if Queta, 26, would be good enough for the Celtics to be their starting center. The C’s employed arguably the best top-3 center rotation last season between Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford and Luke Kornet. But all three departed Boston over the summer, leaving Queta as the last big man standing.
Queta showed flashes of talent during his prior two seasons in Boston. He started his C’s tenure on a two-way contract, then the front office saw enough in him to sign Queta to a standard contract. Initially, last year was his breakout, playing in a career-high 62 games to show that he can be a reliable backup big man.
But being a starter is a whole other task — and Queta has filled in that role admirably. He’s not perfect, but as seen Wednesday, he’s a massive presence. The backup big man spot is still a question mark even with Luka Garza’s recent emergence. But Queta putting together quality minutes is a huge plus for the Celtics for this season and beyond. It’s clear he’s a part of Boston’s future.
“It’s huge, just being a deterrent,” Queta said. “Every time guys drive, just seeing me in there, make them second-guess their ability to get a good finish, and a lot of times it’s not even about blocking it. It’s just making them miss a shot. By being present early and communicating to my teammates that I have their backs, it’s just so much easier for our defense and I think our role just gets clearer.”
Queta is averaging career-highs across the board with 10.2 points and 8.2 rebounds in 24.8 minutes per game. Notably, his 1.3 blocks per game is top-20 in the league. Considering this is the first time he’s been a starter, it’s no surprise to see him putting up counting stats on the regular.
But what Queta has provided is a steadiness. He was arguably the Celtics’ biggest question mark coming into the season. Queta’s role on the team is unique in that him and Garza are the only two traditional big men on the team. If Queta struggled for stretches, it would’ve affected the team’s floor. Instead, Queta has been a consistent big who the Celtics can rely on for a nightly basis.
“He’s just got to keep working,” Jaylen Brown said. “That’s the journey of the season. I thought he did a good job, but we’ve got to be consistent not fouling when we don’t need to foul. We rely on Neemi a lot, so we’ve got to continue to keep it up.”
