For their first seven seasons together, Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum played with a revolving door of point guards. Brown was lucky enough to catch a year with Isaiah Thomas. Then, the Jays flanked Kyrie Irving, Kemba Walker, and eventually, Marcus Smart. This year, Derrick White and Jrue Holiday have occupied the back court.
They’ve reached all levels of success except a championship, including this year’s historic 64-18 regular season and march through the Eastern Conference, and it might be a change in the middle that ultimately makes all the difference.
And now, after losing him to a right soleus strain on April 29th, Kristaps Porzingis returns to the Celtics just in time for Game 1 of the NBA Finals. For the first time in nearly six weeks, Boston reports a clean slate on their injury report. The Unicorn is back.
Of course, much of the narrative surrounding Porzingis’ comeback is the irony of facing his former team. Back in 2019, he demanded a trade from New York and while there was some exploratory talks to swap him for then Celtic Kyrie Irving (!), he ended up in Dallas.
“I don’t know why it didn’t work out,” Luka Doncic said at yesterday’s media availability. “We were still really young. We tried to make it work, but it just didn’t work. So, we moved on.”
Porzingis has intimated similar reasons for the failed marriage: youth, timing, and bad luck. But in his brief time with KP, Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd saw the vision.
“I only had him for a short period of time, I thought it was going well, in the sense of our defense, his ability to block shots, rebound, and then offensively, we looked to post him up a little bit more than Rick [Carlisle] had used him in the post. It was strictly just on the perimeter shooting threes,” Kidd said.
“He has the skill set to do both, but in the business of basketball, there are trades that take place and we’re judged by if it works and if it doesn’t work. That’s just part of the business, but for the short period that I had him, I really enjoyed KP.”
Two and a half injury-riddled seasons later, he was salary dumped to Washington, revitalized with his best statistical season with the Wiz, and finally dealt to Boston last summer. It’s been a long wait — made even longer with his latest injury. But finally, the Finals are here and so is Kristaps.
“When you talk about a big who can put the ball on the floor, who can score, who, I believe, you can put in the post — in today’s game, there are a lot of threes, there’s not a lot of post-ups. On the defensive end, too. A lot times, he doesn’t get recognized for his defense, being able to change shots or [be] a shot blocker. Here in Boston, he’s done an incredible job of doing both,” Kidd said.
Head coach Joe Mazzulla echoed those sentiments. “All he cares about is winning. He’s used his experience from around the league. He’s seen a lot. He’s seen it all. He’s seen success, he’s seen tough times. So, he knows what the league is all about. I think at this point of his career, winning is the most important thing.”
There’s some precedence for Porzingis’ return this late in the playoffs. In 2012, Chris Bosh missed a bulk of the Heat’s charge through the East with an abdominal strain and returned in Game 5 against the Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Like Bosh, he adds a versatility and flexibility to Boston on both sides of the ball, but perhaps beyond the schematics is the emotional aspect of it all. There is a sad and unfortunate timing yet somehow poetic symmetry of Bill Walton’s passing last week and the return of Porzingis tonight. Both big men were and have been hampered with injuries through playing years. Both found their way to Boston late in their careers and made the Finals in their first year. However, there may not be a better parallel between them than the joy they have playing for this franchise.
Walton once said, “I lived to play basketball. Growing up as a kid, Bill Russell and the Boston Celtics were my favorite team. The way they played, the teamwork, the sacrifice, the commitment, the joy, the camaraderie, the relationship with the fans.”
Porzingis has shared a similar enthusiasm for being a Celtic and this moment, his moment, is a long time coming.
“It’s going to be goose bumps, for sure, especially not playing for a while, then coming back in this kind of environment. It’s going to be special,” Porzingis said on the eve of Game 1. “Going to be goosebumps…I’m really, really, really looking forward to it.”
