At 25 years old, German forward Daniel Theis wasn’t an ordinary rookie for the Boston Celtics last season.Although his season averages of 5.3 points and 4.3 rebounds in 14.8 minutes don’t exactly jump off the page, Theis played an important role as a reserve in coach Brad Stevens’ rotation.At 6’9” and 243 pounds, Theis showed an impressive amount of athleticism on both ends of the floor.Offensively, he shot an impressive 54.1 percent from the floor and showed a knack for blowing by slower defenders before getting to the rim. He also knocked down 18 threes on the year, a skill that he will most likely expand on in the future.Defensively, his athleticism allowed him to switch effectively on pick-and-rolls and he also recorded 48 blocks in his 63 games played, despite the limited minutes.In March, a torn meniscus ended his season and therefore created another void for the shorthanded C’s.Luckily, he’s on the road to recovery and will most likely have the opportunity to play an important role yet again in 2018-2019.

Making progress

“I’m getting there,” Theis told A. Sherrod Blakely of NBC Sports Boston on Monday. “I’ve been back two weeks. I’ve been doing new stuff every day.”

“I’m just happy to be back on the basketball court,” Theis added. “I’ve been working out the whole summer, lifting in the weight room when I wasn’t back home. … A little bit of running outside. Since I’m back (in Boston) … being on the basketball court doing basketball player stuff; it’s fun. I’m happy now.”

Although sitting out and watching his teammates make their postseason run was painful for him, Theis learned a few things from the bench.

“First of all, I learned how to be patient,” Theis said. “I wanted to go back on the court so fast. They told me to be patient, you can’t rush the process of healing. I learned that a lot. It was hard watching games on sideline or TV because I wanted to be there. At the end it was so much fun to see those guys, how they played. Every night they give 100 percent whole team, fans, the Celtics organization. Now, I just want to be a big part of this too. I want to be on the court and do the same they did last part of the season and hopefully I can be part of this.”

Although he still has some work to do, he revealed a specific timeline for his return.

“I’m still a little bit away,” Theis noted. “Every day they put in new stuff. It’s the day after that’s important to see how my knee reacts. (Wednesday), with more speed. (Thursday) we’ll see how my knee reacts. For now, my knee never reacted bad. My main goal is to be ready for training camp.”

Heading into the new season, Theis will likely have to compete with Aron Baynes, Marcus Morris, Semi Ojeleye, Guerschon Yabusele and rookie Robert Williams for minutes at the four or five off the bench. Judging by his efficient play last season, he might have the upper-hand to receive some sort of playing time.