Ukrainian Boston Celtics defender Maksym Shulga started his first game in the team's starting five in the regular season NBA and spent more than five minutes on the court.
In official NBA matches for the Celtics, the 23-year-old Shulga played his tenth game, but it was his first time in the starting five. The Celtics came into the game against the Orlando Magic as the second team in the Eastern Conference.
Shulga played 18 minutes and made one three-pointer. He also had three rebounds and one steal. Boston ended the regular season with a 113-108 victory.
The Ukrainian scored only the second time for the Celtics – Schulz had previously done so in the match against Minnesota (92:102). Then the defender did it in 23 seconds of playing time, when he shot the ball from under the basket with an offset and made two more free throws and finished the match with four points.
Shulga played up to two minutes in almost all of the Celtics' regular season games. Before the game against Orlando, his longest game on the court came in a March game against New Orleans, where he played six minutes but was not noted for his effective performances.
In March, it was announced that Boston had given Schulz a full two-year, $2.3 million contract. He had previously been with the club on a two-way deal, playing for the Maine Celtics in the G League and making his debut for Boston in February.