BOSTON — It took not take Kristaps Porzingis long to test himself against Spurs phenom Victor Wembanyama in the opening moments of the Celtics’ win Wednesday night. Porzingis got post position down low against the 7-foot-3 center and used an array of fakes and pivots to create some daylight for himself around the NBA’s best shot blocker. Porzingis finished the progression with a bucket and couldn’t help but crack a big smile racing back down the floor on defense.
“Just having fun, just having fun,” Porzingis said of his reaction. “I thought he hit me a little bit too. I was trying to get the foul, and just a little fist pump to celebrate with the fans that I got one over Wemby, and just competing.”
Porzingis had a terrific night overall, scoring 29 points in Boston’s 116-103 win over San Antonio but couldn’t help but rave about 21-year-old Frenchman after the victory.
“The impact that he has on the defensive end, just with his wingspan and his length is, like, historic,” Porzingis said. “Like, we haven’t seen this, no? So even me, I felt like I need to give him something to get the shot off and, yeah, he’s just a special player.
“We had a lot of drives—I think that’s maybe partially how people feel around me, but with him I think it’s at a different level. You drive in and you’re just like, OK, boom, kick out and just keep playing. Yeah, special, special player.”
The Celtics did a nice job as a team limiting the second-year center to 17 points and 13 rebounds for the new-look Spurs. With new addition De’Aaron Fox still trying to acclimate himself to the big man and his new teammates, the Spurs remain a work in progress. Yet, Porzingis sees a bit of himself in the versatile big man.
“Something maybe, of course, with the outside game, the shooting,” Porzingis said. “But he’s different. He’s just longer, he’s, I think, defensively, he’s in a different stratosphere. But of course he’s gonna go through, like, some learning too. Like, he’s going through it now. And what is he averaging, 24 game or something? Incredible numbers already, 10 rebounds a game, and three, four blocks. Like, it’s just, he’s in his second year.
“I was way, way less advanced than him in my second year. So he’s completely, like, different, different level, I would say. Most important is that he stays healthy and keeps improving at this rate, and the sky’s the limit for him.”
The Celtics will get one more chance to face off with the big man next month in San Antonio.
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