It’s been well over four months since the last time Kristaps Porzingis suited up and took the floor for the Boston Celtics, and that was Game 5 of the NBA Finals — the clincher. Still, amid recovery, he’s found a way to remain engaged from the bench.
That engagement came to life during Boston’s trip to Brooklyn on Wednesday night as the Celtics fought to shake off their unordinary performance against the (severely) shorthanded Atlanta Hawks just 24 hours prior. Porzingis’ 7-foot-2 stature poked out above Boston’s huddles throughout its 139-114 win in Brooklyn, chatting with teammates, hyping up the bench and doing everything to pitch in outside the box score.
It’s a contribution teammates are welcoming with open arms as they await the official return of their starting center.
“He was very verbal and he was in his coaching bag, giving guys what he was seeing out there,” Jaylen Brown said, as seen on NBC Sports Boston’s postgame coverage. “That’s a good sign. That’s a good signal that he’s getting close, he’s getting ready. But his mind, his spirit is out there with us and we can’t wait to welcome him back.”
Boston acknowledged its slow first-quarter start trend that re-appeared during Tuesday night’s Emirates NBA Cup loss to the Hawks, and again, struggled a bit to get going at Barclays Center. The Celtics shot 11-of-22 from the field and trailed the Nets, 34-32, entering the second quarter. But unlike the season-high level of undisciplined basketball that produced 20 turnovers and surrendered 20 offensive rebounds to Atlanta, Boston cleaned up its miscues and stayed poised, this time holding Brooklyn to less than 30 points for the remaining three quarters.
Five days ago, the Celtics went to overtime and clawed away with a four-point win over the same Nets — granted, without Brown. The reigning NBA Finals MVP undoubtedly made a difference, but the resurgence of Boston’s dominant offense which generated an NBA-record 19 wins by 25 points or more last season, was the biggest return.
The 139 points scored marked a season-high for the Celtics, now 13 games into the year. Although Porzingis didn’t account for any himself, Boston isn’t taking away from what he’s aiming to supply from the sidelines.
“I think that’s important, especially for a guy that’s not playing,” Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla said, as seen on NBC Sports Boston’s postgame coverage. “To be as engaged as he is makes it easier for — as he starts to come back — to just put him right in because he’s been there the whole time. And that’s a commitment. That’s hard to sit there day in and day out and do that so I appreciate that he does that. I think it brings a level of professionalism and togetherness to our locker room and it’s been fun to watch.”
Before tip-off, Porzingis underwent warm-up drills, shooting contested 3-pointers alongside teammates Derrick White and Payton Pritchard.
It’ll still be a while until Porzingis can contribute by giving opposing defenses hell on both ends of the floor, however, if performing up to par, the Celtics should be just fine as they were in shorthanded situations last season.
