Celtics sign guard who once led D-I in steals per game with 3.1
On Monday, Boston agreed with Hayden Gray on an Exhibit 10 contract. It's a deal that incentivizes Gray to join the Celtics' G League team (Maine) if he is cut from the NBA roster.
Gray's calling card is his defense. In his final season at UC San Diego, the 6-foot-4 guard averaged 3.1 steals per game. That was best in Division I.
He also put up 11.2 points, 3.3 assists and 3.1 rebounds per game. He shot it at 41.8% from 3-point range.
Gray played in one Summer League game in Vegas for the Celtics, scoring seven points with two assists and two steals in 20 minutes.
MORE: Chris Paul spurns the Lakers with free agency decision
He also spent time at Summer League sharing with Boston reporter Noa Dalzell of CelticsBlog.
'I've got pretty good anticipation, reading the ball handler's eyes, knowing where they want to go with it,' Gray said. 'I take pride in defense. A lot of teams are really focusing on creating more possessions, and I think I can do that by causing turnovers and also just being a floor general, handling the ball, and setting the table for everyone.'
The modern NBA is all about shooting. Maybe that'll be enough to allow Gray to stick around.
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