‘It’s kind of sunk in’: After emotional draft night, Anton Watson ready to make mark with Boston

LAS VEGAS – Earlier this summer, Gonzaga coach Mark Few took time to visit with Boston Celtics President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens at UNLV’s Mendenhall Center.

Stevens swung by to catch a few of his players – Olympians Jayson Tatum and Jrue Holiday, along with Select Team member Payton Pritchard – at USA training camp, roughly a month out from the Summer Games in Paris.

The two men whose legacies are tied to their transformations of midmajor college basketball programs to national powers may have spent a minute traveling down memory lane to revisit No. 8 Gonzaga’s narrow 64-63 loss to Stevens and No. 13 Butler in 2013, but their conversations mostly centered around another subject:

Anton Watson.

Stevens was curious to learn more about the newest Celtic; Few wanted to know how Gonzaga’s latest draftee was settling in with the reigning NBA champions.

“So proud of him, so happy, so proud. It was really emotional,” Few said during USA Olympic camp. “Brad has been here most of this week, so it’s been fun talking to him about it and he’s got a real chance there. Now just like with anything, you’ve got to make the most of these chances. There’s a lot of good players out there, so hopefully, he’ll do that.”

Last spring, Few detailed the excitement and commotion inside his family’s home when longtime friend and former GU coach Dan Monson punched a ticket to the NCAA Tournament with Long Beach State, more than a week after the school terminated his contract.

Emotions inside the Few household when Watson’s name popped up on the television screen in June might have been similar.

The Gonzaga forward has a relationship with Few dating back to elementary school. Watson played on various AAU, high school and Spokane Hoopfest teams with the coach’s oldest sons, AJ and Joe.

Few began recruiting Watson at an earlier stage of the player’s high school career. He received a commitment from the Gonzaga Prep standout before any other member of the heralded 2019 recruiting class, and oversaw his progress for the next five years – a development story that rivals any since Few took over GU’s program in 1999.

Only one other player during Few’s tenure, Robert Sacre, spent five years at Gonzaga before hearing his name called in the draft. Watson’s tireless work ethic and selfless attitude endeared him not just to Zags fans, but also the program’s longtime coach, in a way others haven’t.

“Yeah, really proud,” Few reiterated.

Watson’s former GU teammates who were in attendance at NBA Summer League echoed those thoughts.

“I was so happy,” said Drew Timme, GU’s career scoring leader and Watson’s closest friend while the two were on campus together from 2019-23. “That dude’s worked so hard and never gets the recognition he deserves and just the credit for how good he actually is. It was crazy.”

“Super cool, I’m super happy for him because he deserved it,” said Julian Strawther, whose Denver Nuggets face Watson’s Celtics twice during NBA preseason play in Abu Dhabi. “He’s a guy that put the work in, he had adversity up and down with injuries, and his freshman year when things weren’t looking the most promising. So I’m just happy with his resilience and I know he’s going to find success.”

Former GU forward Killian Tillie had an opportunity to briefly reunite with Watson while both competed for the Celtics during summer league.

“Big time, that was big time,” Tillie said. “I’m so happy he got drafted, I know he’s going to do great things in Boston, for sure.”

Signed to a two-way contract, Watson will split time between Boston and the G League Maine Celtics, located roughly 100 miles up the Atlantic Coast in Portland, Maine.

“It’s kind of sunk in at this point,” Watson said. “We’ve put a lot of work in, a lot of practices and I know what’s in front of me right now, so I’ve got to attack it.”

During Celtics media day, Watson told NBC Sports Boston he’s primary planning to play as a power forward, but might also have the chance to slide over as a small-ball big in certain lineups.

Watson’s taken advice from many of the Celtics’ veteran players and isn’t complaining about where his locker is situated, right alongside that of five-time All-Star forward Al Horford, who’s entering year No. 18 in the NBA.

“He’s just a great mentor, a great person to look up to,” Watson said. “He’s been in the league a long time. Once you get in the league, you don’t really know which direction to go, and if you need help, he’s one of those guys that’s going to help you along the way.

“So yeah, just what he’s done for the past 20 years, it’s kind of crazy. He’s right next to my locker, so I’ll have a lot of questions for him.”

The Celtics urged Watson, who shot a career-high 41% of his 3-pointers during his final season at Gonzaga, to take open perimeter shots at summer league. The rookie said that message hasn’t changed with the regular season approaching.

“That’s the biggest thing, they tell me every day if I turn down a shot they’re going to be mad,” he told NBC Sports Boston. “So let it go, let the shot go.”