The Celtics haven’t added many pieces during free agency. But maybe they’ve helped add a consistent jump shot to Romeo Langford’s game.
The third-year guard went 3-for-7 from the 3-point range and hit an important three down the stretch to help Boston win its first Summer League contest Sunday. Following practice on Monday, Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla, who’s leading the Summer League squad, said he thinks Langford’s jumper is much improved from a technique standpoint.
Now it’s all about his mindset.
“A lot of what goes into shooting is more mindset than technical,” Mazzulla said, via Boston.com. “I think we fixed the majority of the technical things, and now it’s a matter of how many game shots and game reps is he going to get. Where’s his mindset in those adjustments and his ability to shoot.”
Langford, 21, has only played in 50 games over his first two seasons. He’s averaging just 2.7 points per contest in his NBA career, and shooting 35.3% from the field.
Given the Celtics’ dearth of backcourt talent, it would be a boost if the 2019 first-round pick can add more scoring off the bench. Langford had a couple of decent performances to close out the season, including a 14-point effort in the finale against the Knicks.
Earlier this summer, Langford said he’s ready to excel in his third season.
“I feel like I really haven’t shown just about anything that I’m really capable of doing,” he said, via BDC. “I felt like coming into the NBA I really wasn’t known as a defender, but I felt like I’ve shown that I’m capable of playing defense and playing it pretty good. So that’s just a add-on of what I’m capable of doing.”
The Celtics’ next Summer League game is tonight against the Nuggets.