East Notes: Celtics, Malcolm Brogdon, Hornets, Bulls, Play-In

Celtics

Point guard Malcolm Brogdon has no issues being a sixth man. In fact, he indicated he knew that would be his role when the Celtics acquired him from the Pacers last summer.

“I want to win,” he said, via Souichi Terada of MassLive. “The last two seasons for me were rough, not being able to win. I’m a winner. I feel like I’ve been known as a winner. I want to be known as a winner when I’m done playing in this league, and I want to win at the highest level, and that’s winning a championship. So being in Boston, being a Celtic fits me perfectly.”

Coach Joe Mazzulla said that Brogdon has fit seamlessly into the role.

“The humility that he brings to our team, he takes that pride in the second unit,” Mazzulla said, via Terada . “In order to be a great team, you have to have people like that and we have that from top to bottom. Different guys do different things, and Malcolm has come in here with patience, humility and understanding.”

• In case you missed it, the Celtics signed G League small forward Justin Champagnie to a contract. We have the full post here.
• Guard/forward Jayson Tatum‘s new shoe — the Jordan Tatum 1 — came out Friday. He discussed his thoughts right here.

Hornets

• The Hornets converted the two-way contract of guard Kobi Simmons to a standard deal, the team announced in a press release.
• Along with that, the Hornets announced that small forward Xavier Sneed has been signed to fill the two-way deal. Simmons and Sneed have each appeared in three games for Charlotte this season.

Bulls

Guard Ayo Dosunmu appears to be frustrated after being moved to the bench and could look to move on as a restricted free agent this offseason, per Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times.

That said, Dosunmu is saying all the right things, while being honest, as the Bulls head toward the play-in tournament.

“Everybody is a competitor and wants to start; that’s just the reality of it,’’ Dosunmu said, via Cowley. “But at this time of the year, it’s all about trying to get as many wins as possible. You really don’t have any time to worry about anything other than that because in about a week, we’re pretty much going into a (play-in) situation where you either win or lose, and your season can be over with.

“There will definitely be an offseason plan, but my mindset is focused on these last few (regular-season) games, then doing whatever it takes to secure us a playoff spot.’’

• The Bulls enter the play-in tournament as the No. 10 seed and will therefore be trying to make history. No 10th seed has ever won a play-in game, as relayed by K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago.