Jordan Walsh learning to forget the past in Summer League: ‘The first game for me was terrible’

LAS VEGAS — As Jordan Walsh missed shot after shot in his 2024 Summer League debut, visible frustration was brewing. And after a missed call under the basket that led to a Miami Heat fast break, the Boston Celtics wing let it out.

The irritation that had been stewing inside of him finally exhaled into a palpable reaction after the whistle wasn’t blown. He’s gotten mad at referees before, especially during his time with the Maine Celtics, but this was a night-long, introspective annoyance.

It was his worst performance since his days as a Razorback, and he’s ready to put it in the rear-view.

“I don’t ever want to hear about that game ever again,” Walsh said with a smile after practice on Monday.

Walsh ended the game with four points, five rebounds, and six fouls, shooting just 1-of-8 from the field and 0-of-6 from beyond the three-point line.

“It’s no secret- the first game for me was terrible,” he said.

But Walsh seems to have diagnosed what went wrong.

While in Maine, Walsh was placed in a primarily 3-and-D role, playing in a similar manner to how he would in Boston. In his first Summer League action of the year, he strayed away from that concept.

“I feel like my focus is at the wrong thing,” Walsh said. “I feel like I should have focused more on playing how I would play if Tatum were on the floor. And I feel like I was just thinking, like, I was the only guy on the floor.

“Not in a selfish way, but in the way that was, like, I wanted to get my shots and stuff like that. And I feel like I [focused] too much on making or missing shots, and I shouldn’t focus on [that].”

Walsh left college after just one year at Arkansas. Boston moved back and selected him in the second round, signing him to a four-year contract using the new second-round exception.

Throughout his time with the green, after coming into the league as a teenager, Walsh’s growth has been about much more than his on-the-court play.

The youngster’s mindset is still evolving, and his mess of a Summer League start was the latest example.

“That’s what I’m working on now. That’s what the guys have been talking to me about. The coaches,” Walsh said of always focusing on the next play. “I’m just trying to figure out a way to make myself think that that last shot went in and just move on to…