Jordan Walsh grabbed the game ball and held it tightly with two hands as he left the court and into the tunnel back to the locker room. He didn’t let it go. He continued to hold on to it as he walked through a scrum of reporters and did his postgame interview, where he revealed the ball was almost stolen from him twice.

The Celtics rookie wasn’t going to let that happen after scoring his first career points in Sunday’s win over the Grizzlies.

Walsh had seen what happened in Milwaukee in December, when there was controversy over the game ball following a game between the Bucks and Pacers. The rookie knew he needed to make sure his milestone ball was appropriately retrieved.

“I had to hawk it down,” Walsh said. “Luckily, somebody caught it and was looking for me and found it. So I was just running around. He was running around looking for me. Then we found each other and I was like, ‘Is that it?’ And he was like, ‘Yeah this is it,’ and handed it to me.”

Sunday night will long be remembered for Marcus Smart’s emotional return to Boston, where he was greeted back with an unforgettable and special tribute. The game offered very little of interest as the Celtics blew out the severely shorthanded Grizzlies – who had just eight players available – by 40.

That is, at least until Walsh checked into the game with 8:33 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Walsh, who has already quickly become a fan favorite in Boston, entered his third career game and was still seeking his first career points. He quickly got them. After contributing to a defensive stop in his first possession, Walsh broke free in transition, where Oshae Brissett hit him with a perfect pass. Walsh took it in stride, took one dribble toward the hoop and took off for a two-handed slam and a moment he’ll never forget.

“I’m taught to run to the corner. So I just sprinted out and nobody was in front of me,” Walsh said. “So Oshae kicked it ahead, I caught it and I saw a lane to the rim and I was like, ‘This is the time.’ And I just jumped as high as I could and just dunked the ball. After that moment, I was like, ‘I’m getting that game ball.’”

The method of his bucket was everything he could have hoped for.

“Me and KP (Kristaps Porzingis) were talking about his first buckets,” Walsh said. “He was like, ‘A dunk or a windmill would be crazy.’ I was like, ‘I’m going for a dunk, KP.’ So it was amazing for sure.”

Walsh’s dunk was ultimately the final points he scored on Sunday. In fact, it was his only shot attempt of the night. That speaks highly of the rookie, who spent the final eight minutes of the game just looking to make the right play. He passed up shot opportunities to keep the ball moving. And he stayed active on defense, where he thrives, as he posted a plus-16 in his time on the floor.

“At the end of the day, you gotta play the right way,” Walsh said. “You always gotta feed your dogs, I guess you could say. Just knowing that they trust me in that position to make the right plays is the most important thing.”

“It’s important to make the right play every time,” Walsh repeated.

It was somewhat fitting that Smart was in the building for his return on the same night Walsh recorded his milestone. The two are both from the Dallas area, and they both take great pride on the defensive end.

Smart, obviously, has earned the reputation as one of the league’s best defenders over the last decade. He was the Defensive Player of the Year in 2022. Walsh watched from the bench on Sunday as Smart was showered with love by Boston fans and saw all of his old highlights from his time with the Celtics, and couldn’t help but be inspired.

“It definitely inspires you because the Celtics fans know that basketball is more than just getting 30 a night,” Walsh said. “It’s about the hustle plays, it’s about diving on the floor. Even like his clips that were on the Jumbotron, like most of them were him diving on the floor and blocking shots. I feel like for that to be the highlight of what he was while he was here and the fans know that and love that about him, I feel like that speaks a lot to the tradition and the culture of the Celtics.”

One that Walsh wants to become a part of, just like Smart was. Obviously, Walsh has a long way to go to have a career like Smart’s. But at 19 years old, he’s fully aware that his best chance to sustain a long NBA career starts on the defensive end. That’s where he made a name for himself coming out of the draft last year, and how he hopes to do so in the league, too.

“I feel like that’s my personality, that’s my role, that’s how I play,” Walsh said. “And so to be able to kind of like merge into that role and become a guy, a guy like that, I feel like it means the most. I feel like that could separate me from other guys.”