Kristaps Porzingis has been one of the biggest difference makers for the Celtics this season and that was on full display Saturday night against the Pelicans. The seven-footer posted a double-double with 19 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks in a 103-92 Boston win, including several stuffs of All-Star Zion Williamson at the rim.
The effort comes on the heels of a lackluster defensive performance against the Hawks Thursday night when Porzinigis was even subbed out of the game late for defensive reasons. Dejounte Murray feasted on him in isolations during overtime while Clint Capela beat him up on the boards. Those struggles were clearly eating at Porzingis after the loss, which led to a big bounce back in New Orleans.
“Last game, I didn’t play up to my level on all aspects of the game,” Porzingis told NBC Sports Boston’s Abby Chin after the Pelicans win. “Even tonight, the three ball wasn’t falling for me. But there are so many ways me and us as a team can impact the game if things aren’t going perfect for us. And that’s what I did tonight, I just turned up another notch.”
That energy fed the Celtics starting five throughout the middle of the game. After surrounding 37 points in the first quarter, Boston allowed just 31 points in the middle two periods, turning a double-digit deficit into a comfortable lead by the time the fourth quarter rolled around. With all of Boston’s five starters also scoring in double figures around Porzingis, easy baskets were hard to come by for New Orleans in the final three quarters.
“We just knew we couldn’t be in cruise control,” Porzingis told Chin. “These teams are hungry, they need these wins. Maybe we, at this point in the season, don’t need them as much. But still, we want to come out here and compete at a high level every night. Once we hit another gear, the game just flipped.”
The victory improved the Celtics to 3-2 on their road trip and reduced the team’s magic number to three in order to clinch homecourt advantage throughout the playoffs. Clinching that milestone will leave Boston with nothing left to play for doing the regular season but it was evident Porzingis and company was still playing with something to prove on Saturday night.
It was a perfect night for Porzingis by any means (1-of-6 from 3-point range) but it should silence any of his critics after a lethargic defensive effort in Atlanta this week.