Shane Larkin has been a crucial luxury for these Celtics

Shane Larkin has not played more than 24 minutes in a game all year long and hadn’t played over 10 minutes in a game since the month of January prior to Monday’s game in Chicago. Those facts did not prevent Brad Stevens from giving the 25-year-old point guard his first start of the season during Boston’s 105-89 beatdown of the Bulls at the United Center.

The decision featured some classic Stevens logic. Even though Terry Rozier and Marcus Smart (two logical options to start in place of an injured Kyrie Irving) were rolling in the past couple weeks, the head coach did not want to mess with the chemistry on a thriving bench unit by plucking Rozier or Smart to play with the starters.

Instead, he looked further down his bench and gave the call to his third string point guard, who had been a DNP-CD on Saturday night in Houston.

"Shane does a lot of good things for us when he's on the court," Stevens told reporters in Chicago before the game. "He's been really good for us all year. The thing about Shane that I really like is the way he can pressure the basketball. We've talked about that and how he can help direct the tempo and change the tempo of the game."

Life isn’t easy for a guard when you are playing behind the likes of Irving, Smart, Rozier and Jaylen Brown. It’s hard to get too many opportunities to make a meaningful impact in games but Larkin continuously has found ways to be an asset in his limited role on a Celtic team. Monday’s win over the Bulls was one of the better examples of that. He filled up the box score (9 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals) in just 16 minutes and his impact was more measurable than that in one of Boston’s most impressive wins of the year.

LARKIN THE SHOOTER

Despite a miserable start to the year from 3-point range (15 percent in November), Larkin has quietly emerged as a efficient 3-point shooter for this team. He’s lifted his accuracy over the past couple months to a career-best 37 percent from downtown this season and his performance on Monday fit the perfect shot profile of what the Celtics need from him as a point guard and floor spacer. His size (5-foot-11) ensures that he will never be a great finisher around the rim but for the Celtics offense to remain viable with him on the floor, he has to punish the opposition for giving him wide open looks. He did that three times against the Bulls.

1. Spreading the floor on the fast break. The defense collapses on Jayson Tatum during a 3-on-2 fast break, which leaves Larkin wide open on the right wing. He buries the open look.



2. Punishing the Bulls for going under screens. The Bulls want to keep Larkin out of the paint and prevent passing lanes so they go under the screen. He pulls up and buries the 3 with the separation created by the screen.



3. Making the Bulls pay for transition mistakes. Larkin grabs a steal and pushes the ball up the floor on the right side. Bulls defenders are more focused on finding their own guys than slowing down Larkin so he pulls up for a transition 3 and sinks it.



Three wide open looks and three makes. Larkin is never going to be a primary option when he’s on the floor but the improving confidence in his 3-point shot will make it easier for Stevens to turn to him when he wants a change of pace in the lineup as the regular season and postseason progresses.

LARKIN THE PASSER

The Celtics have a lot of talent in the backcourt on this roster but there aren't a lot of natural passers in this group. Marcus Smart is likely the best among them, but he can get in his own way sometimes when he runs the offense by trying to become more of a scorer than a passer. Irving and Rozier have improved their passing skills this year but they both can get tunnel vision as well.

So when Stevens is looking for a traditional point guard to initiate the offense, move the ball and not steal shots from better offensive weapons, Larkin is sometimes the best fit in that role. He has helped the Celtics win multiple games this year (Sixers, Hornets, Nuggets) by jumpstarting the offense late in games with his vision and discipline. On Monday night, he did it from the opening tip in a number of different ways:

1. Finding post players in good spots. Larkin attacks in transition and finds Horford in the paint immediately in a mismatch. The All-Star missed the turnaround but the quick find by Larkin ensured that Horford can get a shot up before help arrives.



2. Pick-and-roll precision: The Bulls did a lot of doubling on the ballhandler on Celtics pick-and-rolls all night and Larkin managed to deliver some beautiful bounce passes in tight spots. Take a look at these dishes to Daniel Theis and Aron Baynes for easy finishes.





3. Staying patient: Holding the ball isn’t exactly encouraged on many offensive possessions in the NBA but it can be the right move in certain spots. Watch here how the ball swings to Larkin on the wing against a disorganized Bulls defense. Instead of attacking the paint, Larkin merely waits for an opening to develop. David Nwaba has to leave Jaylen Brown to give help on a cutting Al Horford while Bobby Portis recovers to find his original man (Horford). Once Horford cuts, Brown takes advantage by sprinting to space at the free throw line. Larkin hits him with the pass and Brown finishes the play with a bucket. That play doesn’t happen if Larkin doesn’t give it time to develop, a sign of a savvy point guard.



LARKIN THE DEFENDER

This has been Larkin’s strength as a Celtic all year long. Stevens has deployed him in the fourth quarter of games on multiple occasions (Houston, Brooklyn, Philadelphia) in order to increase ball pressure and get the opposing offense out of its rhythm. He has the speed and discipline to stay in front of most point guards and make their lives tough when dribbling up the floor.

He didn’t have to do much of that on Monday night against a woeful Bulls defense but he made the kind of hustle plays that builds more trust with Stevens. A few examples of that:

1. Fighting through a box out to tip the ball to a teammate



2. Giving timely help defense and recovering with multiple efforts



3. Stopping a 3-on-2 fast break with a steal.



Monday’s performance will not change Larkin’s spot on the depth chart. He’ll be back to racking up DNP-CD’s most nights once Irving returns to the lineup. However, having him at the end of the bench is a nice luxury for these Celtics. They may not be able to compete with elite teams without Irving but Larkin is good enough to hold down the fort against the middle of the road squads while the All-Star rests his sore knee in the coming weeks. That fact keeps the C’s in contention for the top seed in East with Irving sidelined.

As the playoffs roll around, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Larkin get a bigger role most nights either as the premium on defense increases and lineups trend smaller.

Hitting on low priced talent is an important trait for any contending organization and the Celtics have done that a couple times this year in Theis and Larkin.