Celtics pulled out of too-familiar tailspin in New York, thanks to Kristaps Porzingis

It was happening again. 

The Celtics walked into the fourth quarter leading the Knicks by nine. Three minutes later they trailed by two. After a back-and-forth fight for a while, the Knicks turned two Jaylen Brown turnovers into 3-pointers and a six-point lead with about four minutes to go. 

The Celtics hadn’t faced adversity all preseason long, and they were wilting in the face of their first brush with it on opening night. It looked way too familiar. 

At least Joe Mazzulla called a timeout this time. 

JUMP ON BOARD OUR CELTICS COVERAGE: CODE CELTICS23 FOR 20% OFF ANNUAL PLAN

“That was big, for us to call that timeout right there, figure it out,” Jayson Tatum told reporters after the game. “Rebounding was kind of hurting us. They were getting second and third chance opportunities. Once we started getting stops, giving them one chance, we were under control. We knew what we wanted to run, we knew who we wanted to attack, and we executed.” 

Boston only gave up two offensive rebounds during their 13-3 run over the final 3:39 of the game, leading to New York’s only made basket in that stretch. They only turned it over once, leading to New York’s other point (a Julius Randle free throw). Tatum didn't score. Neither did Brown. 

Porzingis scored nine of those 13 points, Jrue Holiday scored two on a gorgeous feed from Tatum and Payton Pritchard pitched in two game-sealing free throws. Which means both new guys and the guy who finally got an opportunity thanks to the trades for those guys closed the game. 

“It was a team effort,” Porzingis said. “Everybody contributed big time. And it was going to be a tough game. We knew that and it was a tough game but we pulled it off.” 

It was one of those games where each side can point to the box score and say “if only…” and make a strong case for a better result. Both teams went to the line 26 times but New York missed 12 and Boston only missed four. A better night at the line could have changed things for the Knicks. 

Boston had plenty of reflection points of their own. The same week Joe Mazzulla said out-shooting teams is a priority as a way to protect themselves from an off night from deep, Boston went out and only put up 77 shots to New York’s 97.

Not great. 

But what was great was the immediate dividends paid by Porzingis. He went back to his first NBA home as a member of one of their biggest rivals and finished them off. 

“That was awesome. I’m not gonna lie,” Porzingis said. “It’s an awesome feeling to come back now, being a Celtic, and playing here. Even getting booed and getting all that, it’s still cool. I really like that and enjoy that.” 

It was easy to see how much Porzingis enjoyed his first MSG experience in Celtics green. The boos gave way to vulgar chants after Porzingis accidentally elbowed Isaiah Hartenstein in the jaw fighting for a rebound. And the more the fans got on him, the more Porzingis seemed to enjoy it. Instead of playing tense and mad, he reveled in being the bad guy. 

“For me, it was fun. I was just enjoying all that,” he said. “Kind of using that as motivation, motivation to make some big plays at the end, and again, it was actually really, really fun to play and be in that type of environment.” 

He made the biggest plays down the stretch. The echoes of the “F Porzingis” chants were still rattling through the concourse when Porzingis took a pass from a double-teamed Tatum and drilled a shot in Julius Randle’s face to silence the home crowd. 

(Celtics fans in the house made plenty of noise, though. Watch the kid in the Tatum jersey by the scorer’s table as the shot went up)

The way they got to this point wasn’t great. They certainly showed us some of their old selves, even with a newly constructed team. But this time they caught themselves from falling flat on their faces.

Just because a lot of people think this team will be special this year, it doesn’t mean things will go perfectly. They have plenty to fix after the first game, but maybe the realization that it all doesn’t fall completely on them will allow Tatum and Brown to relax a little more down the stretch and trust their teammates. 

Those guys earned that trust on this night, especially Porzingis. 

“He just makes us that much more dynamic,” Tatum said. “Obviously with his size, ability to shoot, make plays off the dribble. … I mean he's really good. He's really, really good. And we are lucky to have him.”