Career opportunity has come knocking for Bill Walker and J.R. Giddens

When they were traded from the Celtics to the Knicks last month, they left Boston as young players scrapping for minutes. On Wednesday, they returned to TD Garden with new roles — Walker as a starter, Giddens as a contributor off the bench.

After riding the pine, battling through injuries and playing in the D-League, the players are getting the chance they had been working toward. The reality was, the Celtics were stacked with veterans who brought plenty of experience. And with the C’s up against a shrinking window of opportunity, they went with their proven players.

“Unless you want me to sit Paul [Pierce], Ray [Allen], and Marquis [Daniels], it would have been tough for [Walker] to play here,” said Celtics coach Doc Rivers, adding, “The one thing I always thought with Billy is that he has an NBA feel. He didn't always play at the pace you wanted, but he had a feel. The problem with him is that we was never around. He was always under the knife. This is the biggest, most important point of his career. This is vital for him.”

Walker and Giddens understand the significance of the opportunity they have been given with the Knicks. Both have been fighting to prove themselves every since being drafted by the Celtics in 2008. Giddens knew that even though he was selected in the first round, he would have to bide his time behind the vets. Walker has been eager since waiting until the 47th pick to hear his name called.

“I think about that every day,” he said. “I got passed on [46] times, if you count it. I got drafted and the team traded me, so I think about that every night. Even when I’m asleep, I’m just thinking about getting up tomorrow and just proving another doubter wrong. That’s what motivates me.”

Walker and Giddens earned more than just an opportunity for playing time when they got traded. They gained a chance to implement all of the advice they had learned from their veteran teammates in Boston. Over the past two seasons, they had been soaking up knowledge in the Celtics locker room. They made mental notes during practice and paid close attention when watching the games from the sidelines.

The commitment to success that was imparted on them by the Celtics has helped prepare them for their increased roles with the Knicks. Now Walker, who averaged just 3.0 minutes in eight games for the Celtics this season, has already started in four games for the Knicks. Giddens, who averaged less than five minutes in 21 games this season, played 13 minutes in his first game back from knee surgery on Wednesday.

“I talked to [Doc] up until the trade. He was just telling me whatever happens, you should be ready because you never know, you might step into a team where you can play right away,” said Walker. “But he always told me that since day one here, to be ready. That’s your job as a pro. I worked every day like that. It finally came and I was able to step in and have some big games.”

That discipline is ingrained in the Celtics systems. Many of the players, such as Ray Allen, follow methodical routines, from game-day preparation to off-the-court habits.

“Just the structure. We had tremendous structure — we have tremendous structure here,” Allen said. “This, for us, at this stage in our lives, most of us on this team, we treat this very much as a job where we need to come in and be very routine about what we do, very structured about we what eat, and how we get our rest.”

That commitment did not go unnoticed.

“Definitely routine,” Walker said of what he learned. “I think just coming in, getting my shots up early before the game. The same thing I did [in Boston], get in early before all the older guys get here, get a lot of shots up, getting a nice sweat going, and then just come in here and try to relax as much as possible for the game. Things like that, just staying focused on the game, reading the notes on who you’re guarding, stuff like that, just being mentally ready.”

Giddens learned another type of discipline. It had more to do with sugar than shooting.

“[Ray] always says that he’s going to be more fit than me because I eat more candy non-stop,” Giddens said. “He got onto me last year about taking care of my body and not eating too much candy. So I slowed down eating a lot of candy just for Ray.”

Giddens enjoyed lightheartedly teasing Allen about who was bigger between the two. Giddens believed he was the winner, but Allen pointed out that wouldn’t be the case if he didn’t change his diet.

“I’d just always give him a hard time about his conditioning because I’d want him to know it’s important to me,” Allen said. “You’ve got to think in that mindset if you want to play the position that I play. So at least now he knows that some of the great players in the league that I played with, this is how they did it. That’s how they did it, and I’ve got to at least start to remember, at least I hear their voice in the back of my head.”

Now Giddens hears Allen’s voice loud and clear. He has curbed his sweet tooth on the advice of his strictly conditioned former teammate.

“[I cut back on] everything,” he said. “I cut back on the Skittles, the Sour Patch, the Laffy Taffy, the Twizzlers, the Gummi Bears. The list is endless. I could eat anything. I would eat candy all day, every day. I only eat it every now and then. Maybe if I’ve got a hotel room on the road, I might attack some Gummi Bears and maybe some M&Ms.”

Armed with years upon years of proven advice, Walker and Giddens are looking forward to making the most of the opportunities they receive on the Knicks as the season winds down. All of the practice routines, game day rituals, and ways of life will continue to increase their impact on the court. Even the ones that are the toughest to follow.

Said Giddens, “Hopefully it helps ... but I really do miss candy.”