But Walsh’s opportunity arrived when the 76ers came to TD Garden on Nov. 11. Suddenly, everything became more difficult for Maxey. Walsh guarded him for 27 possessions and held him to just 1-for-9 shooting. Maxey was 4 for 8 against everyone else.
“My focus was completely on him and his tendencies and how to stop him and how to make him mad and stuff like that,” Walsh said. “But it was cool to have that opportunity, I guess, to have that level of trust, I think, was the biggest thing from Joe [Mazzulla] and the staff and everybody putting in extra hours and extra time to kind of walk me through the plays and how he’s effective.”
Even though the 76ers won that game, the result turned into a useful data point for Boston’s coaching staff that could be revisited later. Walsh, who has shown he can bother opponents of all sizes and speeds, might be the best option against the 76ers’ score-everything point guard.
“Just taking away tendencies and then knowing the small things that get under his skin,” Walsh said. “But I think the biggest thing is, like I’ve been saying all year, not letting the guy do what they want to do. Make them go to their second option, their third option, their second move, stuff like that. Like, if he wants to go right and do a step-back, just don’t let him do that. Make him do something else. And then usually we’ll live with the end result.”
Dominoes had to fall a certain way for the seventh-seeded 76ers to land in this first-round playoff series against the second-seeded Celtics, but now that they have, the value of Walsh’s early Maxey matchups have become apparent.
And with 76ers star center Joel Embiid sidelined for at least Sunday’s Game 1 after undergoing an emergency appendectomy 10 days ago, Maxey figures to be an even more essential part of Philadelphia’s attack.
Walsh insists that he will be ready for this unusual challenge. He has spent the past few days reviewing material and seeking counsel from players such as All-Star guard Jaylen Brown, whose experience battling Maxey’s teams can be measured in years rather than scattered games.
“I learned a lot of things that will kind of like give me a sort of advantage over him,” Walsh said. “I’m not going to say it because he might see it. There’s a couple things that I learned with talking to JB. He’s kind of taken point in that and shown me the film behind the film that we don’t see. But specific things that I think I’m going to be better at that I’ve seen but I will be better at. Also, other things to add or test out and play with to see if it really gets under his skin or makes it matter or gives me some type of advantage.”
Some stars are elite shooters, and others are lightning-quick getting to the rim. Maxey confounds defenses because he is capable of both. But the 6-foot-6-inch Walsh is a rare defender with the length to bother shooters and the speed to keep up with them.
At some point in Game 1, he will come off the bench and get another chance, this time with stakes higher than they were in November. But the faith the Celtics showed in Walsh during that early matchup has given him confidence.
“It’s huge to have that level of trust,” Walsh said. “Really thanks to the staff that I was prepared for that game and even going into the series that I’ll be prepared for another moment like that.”
Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at adam.himmelsbach@globe.com. Follow him @adamhimmelsbach.
