How NBA Scout Envisions Kristaps Porzingis Fitting In With Celtics

Kristaps Porzingis was by far the biggest acquisition made by the Boston Celtics during the offseason.

Boston swapped its longtime defensive workhorse Marcus Smart in order to land Porzingis and assemble a reformed, star-studded Celtics lineup. Obviously, there’s no guarantee, regardless of the hype entering the year, how Porzingis will fit and one NBA scout suggested what Boston’s vision is.

“It’s going to be interesting to see how they utilize Kristaps Porzingis and Al Horford,” an anonymous scout told Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated. “To me, it looks like they’re trying to go as much offense as they possibly can, which is generally speaking a good thing. But at the end of the day, I don’t know how much you can rely on Porzingis.

“If Porzingis plays like he did last year, which he had a great year, then the (Jayson) Tatum, (Jaylen) Brown, Porzingis trio could be a nightmare for people. But will Porzingis be the same guy in Boston?”

Last season, the Celtics were huge advocates of being an offensive-first team.

Meanwhile, Porzingis averaged 23.2 points with the Washington Wizards through 65 games while shooting 49.8% from the field. And being a 7-foot-3 inside threat with an ability to shoot from outside range, Porzingis could be Boston’s missing piece for Banner 18.

The most intriguing part of the potential big three is the fact that Porzingis doesn’t need to provide No. 1 option-caliber scoring production in order to be effective. Boston didn’t need a third star in order to get over the hump and actually meet expectations. The C’s needed an interior presence that isn’t a liability on the other end, and could instead be relied on to counter on the open floor that Tatum and Brown supply when defended by opponents.

And from the sound of it, Porzingis isn’t worried about the thought of playing third fiddle behind Boston’s established All-Star tandem.

“We just wanna be on the same page and achieve the ultimate goal,” Porzingis explained on Celtics media day. “We’re gonna put all our stuff to the side and it’s not what we’re here for. We’re gonna figure it out. It’s a lot of talent, a lot of players that can put up crazy numbers. One night it’s gonna be Jrue (Holiday), one night it’s gonna be JT, whoever.”