BROOKLYN, NEW YORK – After powering through two Brooklyn defenders for a tough and-one finish, Kristaps Porzingis puffed out his chest, marched toward the baseline, and pointed to the sea of green at the Barclays Center, igniting a roar from the Boston faithful that infiltrated Brooklyn.
On the very next Boston possession, rookie Baylor Scheierman fed him a pass at the top of the key. Without hesitation, Porzingis launched a 26-foot three-pointer. Holding his follow-through, he watched the ball swish through the net, then raised his arms—his 7’6 wingspan on full display—before emphatically waving them down as he strutted back on defense.
After missing eight consecutive games and nine of the last 10 with an illness, Porzingis was back. Back from what exactly? Well, he’s still not sure. But he’s happy to be on the court again.
“It was extremely, extremely frustrating, just not knowing what I had. In the end, it was some sort of—I don’t know exactly, but it was some sort of upper-respiratory thing that turned into, like, something heavier. I think bronchitis? Something like that. Along those lines,” Porzingis said. “But I was really—I haven’t been this sick, probably ever in my life. So I was really, like, for a week, really just laying at home, trying to recover. And then, after that, I still had lingering fatigue. And I still have it a little bit, but at least now, I’m getting into, more or less, shape to be able to play. But yeah, after each workout, I was, boom, a big crash. So, I was really, really fatigued. Not normal.”
In his return to the lineup, Porzingis didn’t miss a beat, despite still battling some fatigue. While he struggled from three, shooting just 1-of-7 (14.3%), he overpowered the Nets in the paint, finishing 8-of-9 (88.8%) from inside the arc, getting the free-throw line a game-high six times, as he picked on the smaller Nets all night.
“It felt great,” Jayson Tatum said on having Porzingis back. “Really looking forward to when we have everybody, but, obviously, we missed the big fella, and what he brings, his presence on the offensive end really makes it tough for teams to switch us, and when they do, we can punish them. So it was great to have him back.”
Porzingis finished the night with a team-high 23 points, complimented by two rebounds and a block. He was a game-high +13 in 31 minutes.
“He’s a super-talented guy. Works really hard,” added Tatum. “He knows how to play. It was just good to see him in a good rhythm and getting some shots to go down, attacking the switches, and making us that much more dynamic.”
If not for Porzingis, the roughly hour-long flight home from Brooklyn would’ve felt much longer. The Celtics were staring down an ugly loss against a Nets team that has won just one of its last 11 games. Brooklyn outscored Boston 30-23 in the third quarter and, less than four minutes into the final frame, had cut a 21-point Celtics lead down to just three.
With Jayson Tatum on the bench and Jaylen Brown (back spasms) and Derrick White (knee) unavailable, Porzingis took control of the offense. He scored 14 points in the fourth quarter on 4-of-6 shooting, including a perfect 5-of-5 from the free-throw line. Those 14 points marked his highest fourth-quarter output as a Celtic, providing the cushion his team needed to secure a 115-113 victory.
“I thought he was great. He looked in good form,” said head coach Joe Mazzulla. “I thought his defensive activity was good. At the start of that 4th quarter, I thought he put us in a really great position to win. He executed down the stretch on both ends. It’s great to have him back.”
With Porzingis in and out of the lineup—recovering from offseason ankle surgery, an ankle sprain, and battling various illnesses—the numbers suggest the Celtics have fared better without him. They’re 28-7 when he’s out, compared to 21-12 with him in the lineup. But you’d be hard-pressed to find anyone within the organization who believes that’s the full story. The Celtics understand just how pivotal Porzingis will be to their playoff success. With tougher competition this season, his role will only become more crucial.
“I think he’s dealt with it in a great way. When he’s able to play, he always plays, and when he’s not, he does the necessary steps – whether it’s in the weight room, on the court, in the training room – to put himself in position to play,” Mazzulla said on how Porzingis has handled the up-and-down season. “The great thing is that he does that. We trust him, trust the staff. He has a great attitude about it. Just kind of has an understanding. As the team knows, he’s a huge part of what we do, and we know he needs him at his best, and he’s just got to continue to do that. But I appreciate his optimism that he has, even when it doesn’t go his way.”
Porzingis, who wore his signature smile from the moment he stepped on the floor Saturday to his walk around the court after the game, pumping his fist at the fans, brings joy to the Celtics on and off the court. They appreciate him and his extremely versatile skill set, something they are more than happy to welcome back as the playoffs near.
“Just for him to get back and get his rhythm back is good for us, especially in this stretch before the playoffs,” said Payton Pritchard. “He’s a unicorn. He’s an unreal player. Obviously, when we have him, we’re even more dangerous.”
Related
