MEMPHIS — Xavier Tillman would be the first to admit that last season was disappointing — he appeared in just 33 games and averaged 7 minutes a night. And, albeit in limited stints, he struggled on the court, shooting just 24.5% from the field and 15.6% from three.
“From just a playing perspective, it was very hard,” Tillman said earlier this week at training camp in Boston. “Just wanting to play, wanting to contribute. But I also knew I was going through stuff myself. My knee would have days where it would just swell up into a balloon after I had one scrimmage. So, I knew consistency-wise I could be there to kind of support, but as far as my actual play, I couldn’t do everything I wanted to do. Last year was difficult.”
A stem cell injection he received in his troublesome left knee in March alleviated some swelling, and his knee now feels much better. On top of that, Tillman hired a personal chef and lost 12 pounds in the offseason, crediting a diet centered around chicken and rice.
“The whole summer I didn’t have any flare-ups or nothing like that,” Tillman said. “My knee swelling has been the lowest it’s been since I’ve been here.”
Xavier Tillman begins the 2025-26 NBA season in the city he once called home
It’s especially fitting that the Celtics’ preseason tips off in Memphis, considering that’s where Tillman spent the first three and a half years of his NBA career: “That’s real time that I spent there.”
Standing at shootaround at the FedEx Forum in Memphis, Tillman expressed his eagerness and excitement for a bounce-back season.
“The mentality, honestly, is gratitude and appreciation for me being healthy and being able to go and being able to be myself,” Tillman said on Wednesday. “I had to restrict myself because of my injuries and stuff like that. So more than just gratitude, it’s appreciation for getting to this point and having fun.”
Tillman has thoroughly enjoyed a fast-paced training camp that many Celtics players have deemed the most difficult of their careers.
“It’s forcing me to get in shape even more, so I like that a lot,” Tillman said. “And then I get to play my strengths, like screen setting, and really like getting the hit on guys, and using my strength — so I like that a lot.”
Tillman doesn’t know exactly how many minutes he’ll play or shots he’ll attempt this year — though he shared his three-point shot feels significantly improved after getting endless reps this summer.
But, regardless of who is in the starting lineup, Joe Mazzulla has made clear that opportunities for different players will come throughout different games and match-ups.
“We all want to contribute, first and foremost,” Tillman said. “But, at the same time, we’re all rooting for each other — we all want each other to succeed, because we’ve been with each other since August, put in a lot of pain, working out together, pushing each other. So, once anybody gets an opportunity to shine, you want to root your teammate on.”
On an individual level, Tillman hopes to have his best NBA season yet and average career-highs across all statistical categories. His best season came in 2022-2023, when he averaged 7 points and 5 rebounds in 19.3 minutes per game.
In that season — his third in the NBA — he started 29 games and shot a career-best 61.4% from the field.
Now, with plenty of frontcourt opportunities in Boston, he hopes to outdo that and record career-highs in all statistical categories.
“This year, having opportunities to play more than I have in the past, I’ll try to go for my career highs as much as possible,” Tillman said. “Be aggressive — and don’t take those moments for granted.”
