Kristaps Porzingis looked like his dominant self in just his first game since Feb. 26, leading the Celtics to a “closer than it should’ve been” victory over the Nets on Saturday.
Porzingis missed Boston’s last eight games with what he described as a severe respiratory virus that had initially puzzled the team’s medical staff. Against Brooklyn, the 7-foot, 2-inch Latvian was firing on all cylinders and finished with a game-high 24 points — including 14 in the fourth — to help clinch a 115-113 road win.
Perhaps more impressive than Porzingis’s offensive production was his physical conditioning, which allowed the big man to play 32 minutes in his first game in nearly three weeks. Only Jrue Holiday (38 minutes) and Jayson Tatum (36 minutes) played more for Boston.
“I think he’s dealt with it in a great way,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla told reporters after the game when asked about Porzingis’s return from illness. “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.”
On a night when Derrick White and Al Horford were sitting out (the Celtics clinched a playoff berth the night before in their win against the Heat), Boston benefited from another strong offensive showing from its bench. The Celtics bench, led by a 22-point effort from Payton Pritchard, scored a combined 41 points against a Nets squad that has lost 10 of its last 11 games.
The leading NBA Sixth Man of the Year candidate hit a team-best five three-pointers in the contest, bringing his regular-season total of three-pointers off the bench to an NBA record 220.
“Anytime you hold a record in the NBA — regardless of whatever it is — it’s special,” Tatum said of Pritchard’s feat after the game. “I’m happy for him. He works really, really hard. Everybody knows that. His ability to stretch the floor and take over in stretches sometimes, it really helps us. It helped us win a championship. We’re very, very lucky to have him.”
For his part, Tatum posted yet another consistent performance with 20 points, eight rebounds, and eight assists. Holiday (11 points, season-high 12 assists), Sam Hauser (11 points), and Luke Kornet (10 points, eight rebounds) also played well for a Boston team that’s won seven of its last eight games.
The Celtics led by as many as 21 points after a 25-7 run early in the second quarter. Even so, Brooklyn outscored the visiting team in the third and fourth quarters — led by a team-high 23-point effort from Cameron Johnson — to make things interesting.
Despite the stressful finish, the only real downside to the game for Boston was Jaylen Brown’s early departure. The reigning NBA Finals MVP tallied eight points and five rebounds in the first half but didn’t return over the game’s final two quarters with what the team called back spasms.
The Celtics (49-19) will look to earn their third-straight win Tuesday when they take on the Nets (22-45) again for the second half of the home-and-away series. Boston has now won seven consecutive games against Brooklyn.
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!
