Luke Kornet is back. Kinda.
After spraining his ankle in late September, the Celtics listed him as day-to-day. He’s been seen around practices getting shots up, but on Sunday, he participated in non-contact drills and is ramping up with just over a week to go before the start of the regular season. Boston has one remaining preseason game on Friday in Toronto before Opening Night next Tuesday against Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers.
Before his injury, Kornet had been playing minutes with the starters which head coach Joe Mazzulla said was “definitely something.” President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens has always been intrigued with the journeyman center. After being traded to Boston as part of the Daniel Theis salary dump two years ago, he found his way back to the Celtics at the end of last year and impressed enough to sign a two-year deal this summer.
Since the start of training camp, the Celtics have fortified their front court with the addition of Blake Griffin and Noah Vonleh’s emergence as a solid backup big. However, don’t think that the Green Kornet has lost his spot in the rotation. The team was successful last season, particularly on the defensive end, playing big with Kornet’s 7’2 frame alongside Al Horford, Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Marcus Smart is a continuation of an already successful formula.
