Aron Baynes made the surprise start for the Celtics in Boston’s 116-106 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday, sending Marcus Morris to the bench to open the night. Baynes played a season-high 25 minutes, though he didn’t do much to fill up the stat sheet: 2 for 2 shooting, four points, two rebounds.
But Baynes isn’t in there to post numbers. The big man protects the paint and is better suited to help certain big men over Al Horford. Having them both in the lineup clogs things up on the defensive end, making it hard for opponents to get to the rack.
Horford told reporters it’s “one of the strengths” of the Celtics after the win.
We have a lot of guys that are versatile that could play multiple positions and I think it plays to some of our advantage(s). So I think that’s good. Other times it’s good to go smaller and coach felt like it was important we went big tonight.
With Cleveland trotting out Kevin Love and Tristan Thompson, Baynes provided the help Horford needed to effectively stifle the pair. They held Cleveland’s big men to a combined 17 points.
[Playing with Baynes] helps me a lot. He’s a great defender, always protecting the rim. It was good to play with him and I got to play with him a little more tonight than usual.
