BOSTON — The Celtics welcomed Kristaps Porzingis back into the lineup with open arms in the moments after the opening tip on Monday night in Boston’s 126-94 win over the Clippers. The team went to the big man making his season debut on the first four offensive possessions of the game, which resulted in three wide open looks and a turnover. It was not a part of a gameplan according to Joe Mazzulla but was reflective of a team eager to make Porzingis comfortable after a five-month hiatus.
“I think it’s a credit to them and the locker room and just picking up right where they left off from that standpoint,” Mazzulla said. “We didn’t really have to talk about it. Just the guys know — they know who they are, but it’s credit to them just understanding team basketball. And I think having him back is an example of how the guys positively impact each other. I mean, not just him. If anybody misses that amount of time, you’re going to miss them, and when they come back, it’s important to have them.”
There was some expectation of a rust factor or at least a challenge of integrating Porzingis back into the offense after such a major recovery. Yet against one of the best defensive teams in the NBA Monday night, the Celtics looked ready to pick up where it left from last year. There were a few sluggish moments from the starting five in the beginning of each half but the rest of the rotation (minus Al Horford) slid back into their rightful places. Unselfish basketball was on display as well as offensive sacrifice, paving the way for a 51 point second quarter and a blowout win for Boston, their sixth straight overall.
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For as good as the Celtics were last year, there is a large runway now for Mazzulla to unlock even more from this group with Porzingis back ahead of schedule. The buy-in remains firmly there among his stars and veterans to create an offense that has no weak spots.
“I think when we’re at our best, you have to have an understanding of, you know, this is what we do,” Mazzulla said. “When we’re at our best, we do this. And how long can we stay at the best version of ourselves? It’s important. And then with KP back, you have an opportunity to go to post ups. We got a back door cut for Jayson. So it just adds different layers to what you do.
“But at the end of the day, we’re trying to be the best version of ourselves more than other people, and we have an understanding of what that looks like when we’re at our best. And we’re slowly getting there.”
The Celtics slowly getting there consists of a 15-3 start but it does feel like there is still an untapped potential with this group. They aren’t quite at last year’s level yet on a night-to-night basis and there are a few cracks that have emerged (paint defense) that Porzingis should help shore up.
His impact was already on display down low Monday night as the Celtics tallied 11 blocks with Porzingis having a pair of impressive swats at the rim.
“Just having somebody like that at the rim, you know they have your back,” Payton Pritchard said of Porzingis impact. “So I can pressure the ball more, get into it, and if I get beat I know he’ll recover. It does take a lot of pressure off so you can take more chances and try to get more steals.”
With the Celtics unlikely to be able to go into cruise control all year long to cement the No. 1 seed amid the Cavs’ scorching 17-1 start, they will be able to experiment more now having already built so much chemistry together. That should give Mazzulla a chance to do some of his best work.
“I think Joe likes to be able to have different things in his toolbelt,” Jaylen Brown said. “Against different teams, different lineups, especially going into the playoffs to be able to try and know we’re comfortable in certain things. So throughout the year, I’m sure we’ll have different coverages, different matchups, we’ll be working when it matters the most.”
Repeating won’t be easy for Boston but the Celtics look ready to take their best swing with Porzingis back in the fold and already surpassing expectations.
