NBA: Coach Stevens: Theis has understood his role as a rookie.

Germany’s national basketball player Daniel Theis has become the darling of the public at the record champion Boston Celtics in the North American professional league NBA and also convinces coach Brad Stevens.

“Daniel does an excellent job for someone who has never played in the NBA before. He understood his role as a rookie,”said the 41-year-old head coach during a conference call on Tuesday evening. Theis has been under contract with the 17-time champion since last summer.

The 25-year-old, who in his first season in the world’s best basketball league to date has 38 appearances in 40 seasonal matches, is regarded as the Celtics supporter’s favourite thanks to his dedication “It is an honour for me to play for Boston and that the fans like me so much. The fans in Boston are very special anyway, almost every game here is sold out,”said Theis.

Boston leads the Eastern Conference table and is currently the best team in the NBA. The Celtics recently clinched three victories in a row.