WALTHAM — James Young admits that his sense of self took a beating last season, when the same cycle fed on itself.
The second-year Celtics forward would take the shuttle up to Portland, Maine, play like an All-Star for the Red Claws of the Development League, and get brusquely knocked back to reality once he returned to Boston.
“I was skinnier, pushed around, and I didn’t want to feel like that anymore,” the swingman said yesterday following the Celtics summer league team’s first practice.
“I’m just stronger.”
Much has been made of Young’s ability to add 15-20 pounds of muscle since the end of the season thanks to a monastic routine at the Celtics workout facility.