‘Maybe I’m not perfect, but I’m pretty good’: Kristaps Porzingis’s return lifts Celtics over Mavericks in Game 1 of NBA Finals
Porzingis scored 20 points and had six rebounds off the bench in the Celtics' decisive win.
In just of matter of minutes, Kristaps Porzingis quelled any questions and concerns about how effective he could be in his first game back from a calf injury.
The Celtics’ star big made plays on both ends of the court in the first quarter of Game 1, scoring 11 points to go with two blocks in the opening frame of Thursday’s 107-89 win. He wound up finishing with 20 points on 8 of 13 shooting to go with six rebounds and two blocks in just 21 minutes of action.
Even though Porzingis was quite effective on Thursday, even he had some questions on just how good he could be after missing the last 10 games due to a soleus strain in his calf. Porzingis hesitated Tuesday when asked if he was 100 percent, admitting Thursday that he wasn’t sure how his calf would feel in Game 1.
“I want to say I’m fine, but obviously, I haven’t played,” Porzingis told reporters. I haven’t had the feel of like, ‘Am I 100 percent?’ But tonight was an affirmation that I’m pretty good. Maybe I’m not perfect, but I’m pretty good and I can play like this. I can definitely add to this team.”
While Porzingis had some questions about how his calf would hold up in Game 1, he didn’t have any concerns about how good his game would be.
“Skills wise, for me, there was never no doubt,” Porzingis said.
The impressiveness of Porzingis’s play on Thursday goes beyond the box score. The jumpers he made were mostly contested. Late in the first quarter, he blew by Mavericks center Derrick Lively at the top of the key before finishing with a dunk. A few possessions later, he hustled back on defense to block Josh Green’s dunk.
Those plays helped the Celtics take a commanding 37-20 lead at the end of the first quarter. As Porzingis was making plays all over, he said there wasn’t necessarily a moment where the lightbulb turned on and he realized he was back to the version of himself that scored 20.1 points per game in the regular season.
“Even in the first quarter, when I checked in to start and things were going my way, I didn’t even think about it,” Porzingis said. “I was so in the moment and enjoying the moment, the crowd and everything. I don’t know, it’s just kind of a blur to me right now. I have to rewatch the game, what happened and stuff.
“I was completely just like, in the game. That’s the best feeling. I had the most fun and I hope to have more of those moments moving forward.”
Thursday’s game was different in more ways than one for Porzingis. Not only was it the first time he played in a playoff game beyond the first round, it was also just the second time he had ever played off the bench in his career.
Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said that he felt playing Porzingis off the bench “gave us the best chance to win, though he didn’t seem surprised by his play on Thursday.
“I know the storyline has to be, ‘What’s he going to look like,’ because he was off for a month, but that’s what he’s been doing his whole career,” Mazzulla said. “That guy’s a great player. He’s been great for us. The reason why we’re here is because of what he’s done. So, it doesn’t matter how long he takes off, that guy’s going to make plays because of how talented he is and the work he puts in. What he did for us tonight is big and we’re going to need that for the rest of the series.”
Porzingis didn’t have a problem coming off the bench, either.
“From Day 1, I came here and said, ‘I’d do whatever it takes to help this team win,'” Porzingis said. “This situation, it made sense. I didn’t care. I knew I could prepare to come off the bench, which is something different for me. That’s what I did. I stepped into that role and I embraced and had a good game.”
Now, the Celtics are three games away from a title and have one of their starters from their 64-win team in the regular season back. As the Celtics went 12-2 without Porzingis for much of the first three rounds, Jaylen Brown replied, “yes,” when asked if the team feels more complete with him.
“Kristaps has been great for us all season long,” Brown said. “I think he’s been a big reason why we’ve been the best team in basketball, record-wise at least. Having him back, playing well, and to that level he was at during the season, it’s so important to us because we’ve got another defender, another shooter out there that you have to respect. So, that opens it up for everyone else.”
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