The Celtics blowout the Clippers in KP’s First Game Back from Injury
The Boston Celtics got back their final infinity stone in Kristaps Porzingis tonight, and they decided to pickup right where they left off, defeating the Los Angeles Clippers 126-94. Kristaps has been out all season so far after he got surgery on his foot when he injured a nerve in his foot. He was supposed to come back around late December, but it was announced today that he would be making his debut tonight. Nobody knew he would be returning, but the Celtics organization knew about a week ago that he was going to be playing. And what a game for him to return. The Celtics were on their second night of the back to back, after defeating the Minnesota Timberwolves in a tight contest on Sunday, and also were without Luke Kornet and Al Horford. The Clippers were also on the second night of a back to back as they won big against the 76ers in Philly.
While many people may have speculated how quickly would KP get back to being himself, he answered the question for everyone with his performance tonight: Instantly. He got the Celtics scoring with a 27 foot three ball, and while he did miss a good amount of his 3PAs tonight, it was his confidence that was the most important thing. KP finished the night with 16 points, 6 rebounds, on 50% shooting.
This was the most balanced performance for the C’s all year. Nobody exceed 20 points in the game, but 5 players scored 16 points or more. Jayson Tatum had 20 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists on 46% shooting. Jaylen Brown had 17 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals with a block on 54%. Derrick White had 19 points with 4 rebounds, 7 assists on 50% from the field and 5/9 from 3. Payton Pritchard provided a major spark with 20 points off the bench, and splashing 6 3’s on 10 attempts. Neemias Queta played great in the backup big man role scoring 12 points on 83% shooting, and grabbing 9 rebounds and swatting 4 blocks on the defensive end. And Sam Hauser went 3/3 from 3, getting 9 points on the board.
The most important part of Kristaps return though was his impact on the defensive side of the ball. He was able to help apply pressure on the perimeter on switches on screens, but also in the lane, making it near impossible for most of the Clippers when driving to the lane. He provides the support that makes it more comforting for the perimeter players to do their jobs more effectively.
The Clippers came into this game tied with the C’s for the longest current win streak in the NBA with 5 wins. Ivica Zubac was their driving force for the game, as he scored 23 points on 78% shooting and also grabbing 10 rebounds. James Harden scored 19 points, and dishing out 9 assists and grabbing 8 rebounds of his own. But the Celtics defense contained the Clippers to only shooting 43.3% as a team, and making them shoot a measly 7/26 from deep.
The Celtics showed that they are the defending champs for a reason. They are finding their footing on the defensive end, and were lighting it up from 3 point land as they tied the NBA record for most 3 point makes in a quarter with 12. If this is a sign for things to come, then the rest of the league is going to be dealing with a massive problem.
The Celtics now get a 3 day break and will play their next game on Friday against the Bulls for their final game of group play in the NBA Cup. And for the Clippers, they travel to Washington to face off against the Wizards, hoping to bounce back after tonight’s performance. The moral of the story is this: The Celtics got their Unicorn back, and the rest of the league are shaking in their boots.