Kristaps Porzingis’ return turned into an extended celebration Monday night as the Celtics stomped the Clippers 126-94.
BOSTON — In his first game since helping the Celtics win the NBA championship five months ago, Kristaps Porzingis picked up right where he left off.
The 7-foot-3 center, making his season debut after undergoing offseason leg surgery, finished with 16 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steals and 2 blocks in 23 minutes for Boston, as the Celtics led by 29 points at halftime en route to a 126-94 victory over the LA Clippers at TD Garden.
“I felt great”, Porzingis said with a smile afterwards. “It was a long rehab, and I was itching to get back out there with this team after winning a championship.
“It was a good beginning, good first game back.”
It was certainly that, as Boston jumped out to an early lead and never looked back, turning the final 24 minutes into an extended celebration of Porzingis’ return.
And, in his first game in five months, Porzingis immediately provided the combination of floor spacing and rim protection that amplifies Boston’s efforts at both ends of the court.
In a sign of both Porzingis’ versatility and what life in today’s NBA is like, Porzingis — the tallest man on the court — took half of his shots from 3-point range, including from the top of the key on each of the first two possessions of the game. After missing the first, he made the second one — the only one he’d make among six attempts.
Inside the arc, however, was a different story. Porzingis went 5-for-6 on 2-point shots — including making a nice mid-post bucket over James Harden and throwing down multiple lobs from teammates — though Porzingis joked he got “flat tires” on both of them due to a combination of his timing being off and his conditioning catching back up with him.
