When the season began, the assumption was that Kristaps Porzingis would return to the floor sometime in December.
As Porzingis continued to make progress following ankle surgery in late June, it became clear that he may be back sooner than expected. On Monday – yes, in late November, well ahead of schedule – the Celtics announced that Porzingis was officially available.
He provided a spark against the Clippers, contributing 16 points on 6-of-12 shooting, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocks and 1 steal in 23 minutes and steering the Celtics to a 126-94 win at TD Garden. The Celtics (15-3) have now won six straight after snapping the Clippers’ (11-8) five-game win streak with a complete effort.
“It has been killing me inside not to be able to be out there, but it was worth the wait,” Porzingis told NBC Sports Boston’s Abby Chin.
Payton Pritchard and Jayson Tatum led the Celtics with 20 points each, with Pritchard finishing plus-30 in a dazzling display. Ivica Zubac paced the Clippers with 23 points and 10 boards.
Boston shot 51.1 percent from the floor and 43.1 percent from 3-point range, connecting on 22 3-pointers and racking up 33 assists.
Porzingis wasted no time firing away, missing a 3-pointer on the Celtics’ first possession and making a 3 on the next. He immediately made his presence felt defensively, using his length to alter shots at the rim and providing an interior presence the Celtics have lacked for much of the season. Porzingis looked a bit rusty at times, but he was his usual active and disruptive self the majority of the night.
“I did have a couple flat tires on some lobs,” Porzingis said. “ … I think with each game, I’m only going to find my rhythm more.”
The Celtics, playing without Al Horford and Luke Kornet, used Porzingis in the high pick and roll early and often. That organically yielded open looks for shooters in the corners and on the wings.
Boston used a 14-5 flurry to pull ahead and took a 27-20 lead into the second. Tatum led the way with 9 points, 7 rebounds and 2 assists in the quarter, and Neemias Queta added five boards off the bench. Both teams shot below 40 percent in the quarter.
Then, with Brad Stevens on the broadcast in the second quarter, the Celtics resembled exactly the type of team he envisioned as he constructed the roster. Stevens joked that Porzingis looked like a guy who hadn’t played in a while, then noted that once the Celtics saw him move well in Abu Dhabi, they had a hunch he’d return ahead of schedule.
The Celtics made 12 threes in the 2nd quarter tonight, tying the NBA record for threes in a quarter.
— Celtics Stats (@celtics_stats) November 26, 2024
Stevens looked on as the Celtics tied an NBA record for 3’s in any quarter ever with 12. They started six of six, with Pritchard and Sam Hauser doing much of the damage.
“This guy loves basketball so much,” Stevens said of Pritchard. “He works as hard as anybody I’ve ever been around.”
Jaylen Brown (17 points) then exploded for 10 points in 73 seconds – connecting on a 4-point play, and and-one and a 3 back to back to back. Brown then found Porzingis for a signature “Cookies and Cream” alley-oop that sent the crowd into a frenzy.
Zubac and James Harden (19 points, 9 assists) were steady for the Clippers, but the Celtics had way too much firepower for Los Angeles to handle. Boston shot 52.9 percent from the floor, 47.1 percent from 3 and assisted on 18 of 27 field goals in the half. The Celtics also out-rebounded a typically physical Clippers team, 26-19.
Boston build a commanding 78-49 halftime lead, erupting for 51 points in the second quarter – the third-most points in a quarter in franchise history.
“I think our pace is incredible right now,” Pritchard told Chin at halftime. “I think this is our best game as far as our pace, getting up and down. Even after makes, we’re playing quick, and it’s allowing us to get easy catch-and-shoot 3’s. When we’re doing that, we’re the best in the business.”
Boston had 51 points in the 2nd, tied for the most in franchise history in the 2nd quarter. Only twice in NBA history has a team scored more in the 2nd, Phoenix vs. Denver in 1990 (57) and Bullets vs. Detroit in 1965 (52)
— Dick Lipe (@DickLipe) November 26, 2024
The Clippers trimmed the deficit to 84-67 midway through the third, but Porzingis helped the Celtics reclaim momentum with a strong take and finish at the rim. Pritchard buried back-to-back 3’s, as Boston took a 99-78 edge into the fourth.
Derrick White (19 points, 7 assists) splashed a 3 to extend the margin to 108-81 with 9:05 remaining. Queta threw down a thunderous slam, Jordan Walsh and White swatted shots and Queta finished in traffic to put the finishing touches on a dominant win.
The Celtics have four days off, then will face the Bulls on Friday and Cavaliers on Sunday on the road.
