Kristaps Porzingis gave a team debut for the ages to help the Boston Celtics earn a hard-fought 108-104 win over the New York Knicks on Wednesday night.
The veteran center scored 30 points and added four blocks for a complete performance at both ends of the floor. As one of two marquee additions of the offseason for Boston along with Jrue Holiday, Porzingis proved his worth on his new team from the jump.
FS1’s Colin Cowherd saw a major impact from one of the newest Celtics to set the tone for the new-look roster.
“Here’s all I needed to see: Porzingis scored 30 points,” Cowherd said on Thursday’s episode of “The Herd” on FS1. “I don’t even need to watch the Celtics until May, seriously. How many fourth-best players on a team, against a good defensive team on the road, can drop 30?”
Story continues below advertisement
With Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown leading the way, Cowherd mentioned that Porzingis would be available for better opportunities.
“There’s no pressure to be the man,” Cowherd said.
With recent championship caliber teams in mind, the FS1 host compared Porzingis’ role with Boston to that of Andrew Wiggins with the 2022 Golden State Warriors and Aaron Gordon with the 2023 Denver Nuggets. Both of those teams won NBA championships and Porzingis could carve his own path to support Boston’s top duo just as Wiggins and Gordon did with their teams.
Story continues below advertisement
“Boston to me feels a lot like Denver,” Cowherd added. “They’ve got their two guys.”
Porzingis made huge plays for Boston throughout the win to drive the capabilities of the retooled roster.
No Matchup Found
Click here to enter a different Sportradar ID.
The Celtics look to move to 2-0 on Friday night in their home opener at TD Garden against the reigning Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET.
Story continues below advertisement
Featured image via Wendell Cruz/USA TODAY Sports Images
