The Celtics took a 2-0 lead in the NBA Finals after they beat the Mavericks on Sunday with a 105-98 victory, but they almost reopened their trauma concerning Kristaps Porzingis, who had already missed six weeks of the playoffs due to a knee issue. Late in the fourth quarter, everyone thought he had re-aggravated his left calf injury.
However, after the match the Latvian assured the press that this time it was his right leg that was hurt, but he insisted that he wasn’t too concerned about it. “I feel good, I don’t think it’s anything serious, but we’ll look at it tomorrow and go from there, but all good, I’ll be good,” the big man said.
Kristaps, who scored 12 points on an efficient 4-of-7 shooting from the floor, along with 4 rebounds and 2 blocks, thought he would still need some imaging done on his leg.
“I’ll be good… I’ll die out there”
Kristaps Porzingis gives us an injury update and says he will not miss Game 3 pic.twitter.com/G2yg6gRsG1
— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) June 10, 2024
Nevertheless, it was his own coach who discarded any possibility of his injury becoming a concern during these championship series. When asked by the media if he was worried for him playing Game 3, he said “Zero, he’s good.” The starting center also gave assurance ahead of the next contest: “Not difficult at all, I’ll die out there if we need.”
Followed by the big man’s 20-point contribution from the bench in Game 1, he was surging with confidence after completing his return to the NBA courts. The Latvian also posted 6 rebounds and 3 blocks that night, and admitted after the game that he was reminded just how good he was.
“Tonight was affirmation to myself that I’m pretty good,” the center expressed after his highly-awaited recovery. “I’m not perfect but I can play like this and I can add to this team. The adrenaline was pumping through my veins.”
Jrue Holiday was another key element in their Game 2 success, as yet again he proved to be one of the league’s most elite defenders. “Sometimes when I drive and I might get stuck, I need somebody to drift with me or to kind of be in space and be in my vision,” he said. “So I think for the most part, I just try to stay in front of him, give him a good outlet and he’s been making great reads.”
Coach Joe Mazzulla is tired of the press talking about who is Boston’s star, as his squad is meant to play as a team
This talk about who is the Celtics’ main player is really getting on Joe Mazzulla’s nerves. According to the Boston tactician, his team has stars on both sides of the floor, as their strength comes from playing together and focusing on teamwork.
“I’m really tired of hearing about one guy or this guy or that guy and everybody trying to make it out to be anything other than Celtics basketball,” Mazzulla expressed postgame. “Everybody that stepped on that court made winning plays on both ends of the floor. That’s the most important thing.”
The upcoming games of the NBA Finals will be Wednesday and Friday in Dallas, as Boston is yet to lose on the road during these playoffs. It has also been the ninth time in the club’s history in which they have won the opening pair of the championship series, where they have won the title in 8 of those occasions.
“Coming into a game, it’s kinda similar to a puzzle, and he’s done a great job learning how to solve the puzzle and do different things,” said the Celtics head coach. “Tonight with the way they were rotating, and the way that they were defending, the most important thing was to make the right play at the rim.”
