Robb: Isaiah Thomas Still A Motivated Man After Earning All-Star Berth
BOSTON (CBS) – Not many people expected the Boston Celtics to have an All-Star less than three years into its rebuilding process. Fewer likely believed it would be a player under 6-feet tall.
Isaiah Thomas defying the odds on both of those fronts on Thursday when he was elected by Eastern Conference coaches as a reserve for next month's All-Star game in Toronto. On Friday night at the TD Garden, the point guard spoke candidly about just how much the honor meant to him.
"It's been different I guess you could say," Thomas said before Friday's win over the Magic. "A lot of people have been contacting me. It's been nice though. I'm trying to just enjoy the moment. It really hasn't hit me yet but it's an enjoyable moment."
As the 26-year-old guard was hearing from friends and family to pass along some congratulations, one of the first people Thomas called after finding out about the honor was his head coach.
"He just said, 'You deserve it. You worked for it," Thomas said of the conversation with Brad Stevens. "'A person that works as hard as you do and loves the game as much as you do, you deserve it. And continue to just be yourself. Continue to get better.' And he said, 'Now the good thing about this is something else needs to motivate you. You need to take your game to a higher level.' That's what I have planned anyway."
"He's just been someone that's been in my corner since I met him. Without him and my teammates I definitely wouldn't be in this position. They really embrace who I am. And that means a lot."
Stevens wasn't surprised by the outpouring of support for the 5-foot-9 guard in the days prior to the decision.
"He's got a great, contagious personality," Stevens said. "People like being around him. So people will root for people like that. And then I think they're also drawn to the underdog, right? The guy who was the 60th pick in the draft, that's under six feet, that plays with a chip on his shoulder. I think people are drawn to that. But all that said, he earned it as being one of the guys in the league that has played at that level thus far. And so our guys were all happy for him. It's good to see others were too. Certainly we are. It's a great experience and a great opportunity for him."
While the achievement does allow Thomas to cross off one of the biggest individual goals he has off his list, he's still made a point push for greater heights and try to achieve his dream of being the best little man in NBA history.
"I guess I'm going in the right direction, but I'm not satisfied," Thomas explained. "I expect those types of things out of myself and I think when you hold yourself to a higher standard, things that happen, you just go with the flow."
That mindset should only help Thomas and the Celtics' run success for the remainder of the year. With the team a season-high six games above .500, Thomas could use the All-Star berth as a springboard for another unexpected run to the top tier of the Eastern Conference for the upstart Cs.
Brian Robb covers the Celtics for CBS Boston and contributes to NBA.com, among other media outlets. You can follow him on Twitter@CelticsHub.
