Boston Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis made his long-awaited season debut in their win against the Los Angeles Clippers, and none of them could be happier than Jaylen Brown, who has formed a strong bond with the Latvian international.
Porzingis and Brown picked up where they left off in the second period, as Porzingis received an alley-oop pass from Brown, much to the delight of the TD Garden crowd.
“As soon as I broke the line of the defense, that’s when I knew I was gonna have (Porzingis). They weren’t gonna let me just get straight to the basket,” Brown detailed via Daniel Donabedian of ClutchPoints. “So I knew I’d have KP so I just put it up there for him and let him do the rest. But ‘Cookies and Cream’ is back! Let’s get it.”
Kristaps Porzingis finished the game with 16 points, six rebounds, two assists, and two blocks on 6-for-12 shooting from the field, and Jaylen Brown had 17 points, six rebounds, four assists, and three steals on 6-for-11 shooting from the field.
Boston Celtics’ Joe Mazzulla reacts to Kristaps Porzingis’ season debut
Kristaps Porzingis’ return made the Boston Celtics unplayable against the Los Angeles Clippers since he can stretch the floor, finish at the rim, and alter shots. Head coach Joe Mazzulla reflected on this during the postgame press conference.
“I thought he played well,” Mazzulla stated about Porzingis. “We were able to get back to some of our defensive versatility. Obviously, a little bit of rim protection … Offensively, (he) just really helped our spacing. It was good to get him back … To have that post presence where you can get different looks is important for us.”
The Boston Celtics are now 15-3 to start the 2024-25 NBA campaign. They will face the Chicago Bulls next on Friday for their fourth NBA Cup contest.
