The Boston Celtics rolled the Cleveland Cavalier 120-95 in Game 1 of their second round NBA Playoffs matchup on Tuesday.
While the Celtics were paced by Jaylen Brown’s 32 points, Boston head coach Joe Mazzulla shouted out multiple reserves – including unheralded vet Luke Kornet, per Daniel Donabedian of ClutchPoints:
“Joe Mazzulla had high praise for Boston’s bench: ‘[Luke], Payton, Xavier, Sam, those guys played great minutes … You can’t be a good team unless those guys win you games … I thought Luke’s presence was great for us.’”
Kornet played 21 minutes off the bench for the Celtics, scoring only four points but snagging 10 rebounds and blocking a pair of shots while finishing with a +12 in the game.
In the regular season, Kornet averaged just 5.3 points and 4.1 rebounds per game for the Celtics.
Both teams played without their starting centers. Cleveland’s Jarrett Allen missed his fourth straight game with a bruised rib injury he sustained in the first round against Orlando. Boston’s Kristaps Porzingis was sidelined for the second consecutive game with a strained right calf.
Championship or bust for Celtics
After falling in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals in Game 7 last year, the Celtics’ front office knew something had to change. Yet, few expected just how monumental Boston’s roster shake-up would be at the hands of president of basketball operations Brad Stevens.
In June, Stevens tried to deal 2023 Sixth Man of the Year Malcolm Brogdon in a three-team trade for 2018 All-Star Porzingis. The deal ultimately fell apart due to Brogdon’s injury history.
Stevens didn’t give up, though, eventually parting ways with veteran guard Marcus Smart in order to land Porzingis. The longest-tenured Celtic at the time was a key part of Boston’s core for nearly a decade, but Stevens knew he had to do whatever it took to improve the roster.
This huge trade set the NBA world on fire, especially for die-hard Celtics fans who’d grown to love Smart and all the energy and defensive aggressiveness he brought to the team as their tone setter.
Bolstering Boston’s starting lineup with Porzingis wasn’t the only work Brad Stevens put in this offseason. To fill the defensive hole left by Smart, the former head coach traded for two-time All-Star Jrue Holiday just a few days before training camp. Holiday was available after the Milwaukee Bucks dealt him to the Portland Trail Blazers in the Damian Lillard blockbuster.
By moving off of Brogdon in exchange for a defensive-monster guard who will do whatever it takes to win, the Celtics have gone from contenders to a team that has seen their championship window kicked wide open. Finishing so far ahead of the rest of the pack in the regular season made it clear that this season is championship or bust for the Celtics.
