Boston Celtics (27-11) center Kristaps Porzingis wasn’t at all offended by the boos raining down from the TD Garden crowd during the fourth quarter of his team’s loss to the Sacramento Kings (19-19) on Friday night.
If anything, the 7-foot, 2-inch Latvian in his second season in Boston said he expected that sort of reaction from a fanbase known for its high expectations. That’s because the Celtics, who hadn’t lost to the Kings since 2021, were outscored 38-21 during the game’s final quarter, turning what was a tie ballgame heading into the final frame into head-scratching loss.
“Honestly, I liked it. It’s kind of deserved, you know,” Porzingis said of fans’ boos following Boston’s 114-97 loss. “They expect a high level from us. A high level based off our talent and what we’ve shown in the past. And not only that, not only just the talent and not making shots, I think we weren’t giving our all. And I think that’s the most deserved boos. So it’s normal and that’s just a sign of them wanting us to bring up our level, bring up our energy. And we have to respond to that.”
Typically a tell-tale sign of a team’s effort, the Celtics were outclassed on the glass. Sacramento out-rebounded the Celtics 56-43 in the contest, including a 16-8 advantage on the offensive boards. And leading the charge for the Kings was center Domantas Sabonis, who pulled down a career-high 28 rebounds to complement his 23 points.
Sabonis’s performance on the glass was the best in the NBA season, topping a 23-rebound effort from San Antonio’s Victor Wembanyama in a game against Denver on Jan. 4. It was also Sabonis’s 33rd double-double of the season and 24th game of his career with 20 or more rebounds.
Porzingis wasn’t the only one who called out Boston’s effort against a Kings squad now riding a six-game win streak. Though for his part, Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla chalked up the majority of his team’s effort issues to a frustrating night offensively.
“If you’re having empty possession after empty possession, and then they’re scoring, that takes a toll on you,” Mazzulla told reporters after the game. “And so yeah. I’d say it’s not a long-term effort thing, but in the short term, I think our inefficient offense put pressure on our defense and they were able to take advantage of that with high-level, effort plays.”
Boston converted just 11 of 41 attempts from beyond the arc, and were surprisingly outshot from distance by a Kings team that hit 18 of 47 tries.
“If you’re going to shoot 20-percent from three, you’re going to have to do a bunch of other things really, really, really well,” Mazzulla added. “And that just puts pressure on your defense throughout the game. So we’ve got to be better there.”
The Celtics were led by a 28-point performance from Jaylen Brown, followed by Porzingis with 22 points and 10 rebounds. All-Star forward Jayson Tatum also registered a double-double for Boston, finishing with 15 points and 12 rebounds.
DeMar DeRozan led Sacramento’s offense with 24 points and four assists, while Malik Monk added 22 points and eight rebounds.
The Kings will look to win their seventh game in a row Sunday when they travel to face the Chicago Bulls. Boston, meanwhile, will try and bounce back and win over the TD Garden crown Sunday against the New Orleans Pelicans.
Read More NBA News From Stadium Rant Here: NBA News
If you enjoyed this article, subscribe to our newsletter here. Check out Stadium Rant Original shows on our Youtube channel and subscribe! Give our socials Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok a follow for more great content!
