The NBA regular season kicked off back in October with the defending champion Boston Celtics hosting the New York Knicks.
Still, everybody knows the season doesn’t really begin until Christmas, 30 games or so after the pomp and circumstance of opening night.
Both the trade deadline and All-Star festivities are officially in the review mirror, and rosters are pretty much set in stone for the duration of the season. It’s time for Boston’s title defense to really, really begin.
The Celtics’ first 55 games mean little in terms of its greater quest to become the first team to repeat as champions since the Golden State Warriors did it in 2018. So it’s time to touch on a few random storylines as the All-Star break comes to a close.
It’s hard not to see the impact 7th-year center Luke Kornet has had on this year’s Celtics — even despite limited playing time.
Kornet’s play early in his second year in Boston allowed starting center Kristaps Porzingis to take his time working his way back from offseason-leg surgery, helping the team to a 14-3 record in his absence. And while it was fellow big-man Al Horford who got the majority of the starts in the 17 games without Porzingis, Kornet’s production on both ends of the court spared the 39-year-old from back-breaking minutes that will hopefully keep him fresh during what the team hopes will be a lengthy postseason run.
“I feel like Luke Kornet has been key for us when we talk about that identity and the way that we’re going to play,” Horford said. “He’s protecting the rim at an amazing level, and defensively, he’s given us a lot of stability. … And because of that, I feel like all of us are kind of stepping it up a little more.”
Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla agreed, citing both Kornet’s performance and personality. The 7-foot, 1-inch, 29-year-old is averaging 5.1 points and five rebounds this season and can constantly be seen making his teammates laugh.
“I think [it’s been] some of the best basketball he’s played, just on both ends of the floor,” Mazzulla said of Kornet following Boston’s win over the San Antonio Spurs earlier this month. “His physicality and rim protection are contagious, but he also brings a level of joy to the game on and off the court.”
Being hand-picked to play on Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal’s team of All-Stars is an honor. When that team is nicknamed “Shaq’s OGs,” in reference to its roster full of players closer to retirement — like 40-year-old Lebron James — than their NBA debuts, that honor may lose a bit of its luster.
That was the case for Boston’s Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, who were the only two players under the age of 30 on Team Shaq’s roster. Tatum, who turns 27 next month, and Brown, who is 28, were the babies on a team whose next youngest player was Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving at 32.
In fact, even Kenny Smith’s team — dubbed Kenny’s Young Stars — had a player older than both Tatum and Brown in New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (28). The OG moniker didn’t slow down the duo’s play, however, with Tatum posting a night-high 21 points and Brown adding 12 points, two rebounds, and a steal.
Speaking of All-Star weekend, it was a promising sign to see Brown in action Sunday night after having missed the Celtics’ previous two games with a knee injury.
Fellow starter Jrue Holiday, meanwhile, has missed his team’s last four games with a shoulder injury. The point guard, who was acquired in 2023 from the Portland Trailblazers after having played the previous three seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks, last played in Boston’s win over the Eastern Conference-leading Cleveland Cavaliers on Feb. 4.
Remember that unofficial start to the NBA season? The Christmas Day one?
The Celtics still have a bad taste in their mouths from that game, a four-point loss to an underwhelming Philadelphia 76ers (20-34) squad. And while Boston (39-16) has since avenged that loss with an eight-point victory earlier this month, Mazzulla’s team will likely have more to prove when the teams square off Thursday night for a nationally televised contest on TNT.
Boston heads into that contest with three straight victories, while Philadelphia has lost five straight.
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