Jerryd Bayless Hopes To Stay A While

Jerryd Bayless hopes to stay a while

Wednesday, January 8, 2014
By:  Mark Murphy





DENVER — Jerryd Bayless was drafted by Indiana in 2008 and traded to Portland that night.

He was then traded to New Orleans in the fall of 2010, traded to Toronto that November, and signed with Memphis as a free agent in July 2012.

The Celtics are his fifth team and his fourth trade.

Bayless, acquired by the Celtics in exchange for Courtney Lee and a 2016 second-round pick on Monday, admittedly would like the chain to stop. He wants a permanent landing spot, or at least one for a little longer than two seasons. He’s excited about playing for Brad Stevens, one of the most talented young coaches in the game.

“I have bounced around a lot, and I am looking for a home where I can settle in,” the 25-year-old guard said at yesterday morning’s shootaround. “It’s not a negative thing, because at the end of the day someone else wants you. That’s the way I try to look at it. Hopefully this can be one of my last stops.”

Though Bayless struggled this season for Memphis, shooting 37 percent from the floor in his combo guard role, he has enjoyed some of his brightest moments as a player against the Celtics.

His 22-point, 9-for-11 performance against the Celts on Nov. 27 in Memphis was Bayless’ only 20-plus game this season. His 30-point performance last March 23 in Memphis was also a season high.

“I remember them. It went well,” said Bayless, who had six points and three assists in his Celtics debut last night. “Hopefully that can translate to me being in Boston now. I’m excited about moving there and being part of the organization.”

Bayless now joins Jordan Crawford and Avery Bradley as combo guards whose playmaking time will decrease once Rajon Rondo returns to the lineup. He only hopes he does enough to stay, though he will be a free agent next summer.

In that respect he’s not surprised with the move.

“It’s my contract year and situations like this happen,” said Bayless. “It’s not disappointing, but it’s part of this business. You have to get acclimated with how this team does things, and I will. I’ve been traded a couple of times before, so it’s nothing new to me. It’s difficult, but once the initial shock wears off, you move on with it.

“It’s disappointing for the first couple of days, because the hardest part is that you build relationships with people,” he said. “You’re so uncertain at times, and to pick up your life and move to another city is tough. It’s something all of us have signed up for.”

That doesn’t make the process any easier. Consider how Bayless was given the news on Sunday. He went into a game against Detroit knowing he was about to be traded, and finished with a strong 10-point, five-assist performance that included a pair of 3-pointers.

“I kind of knew before the game, and on the plane is when my agent called me,” said Bayless. “What am I supposed to do? You move on. I put on my headphones and tried to go to sleep for a bit. And then I was in Denver yesterday morning. The turnaround was quick. That’s the tough part about it. But I’ve been through it before, and I’ll be OK.

“I’m excited. It’s a different opportunity, a young team and I’m trying to help,” he said. “Coach Stevens is a wonderful young coach in this league. I look forward to going out and playing for him, and being part of this organization. It’s one of the most storied franchises in all of sports. I’m looking forward to getting out there and representing it well.”



bob
MY NOTE: Good luck, Jerryd. This is a big opportunity for a back up point guard.


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Not easy to blend into a system on the run. It's probably wise to judge him more by his talent level than by his overall contributions for the first few weeks.

Sam