Boston Celtics fans everywhere had to do a double-take after the team’s first timeout in Saturday’s 112-96 win (without Jaylen Brown) over the Toronto Raptors. Head coach Joe Mazzulla made a hockey-like substitution, swapping the four Celtics not named Payton Pritchard in favor of some fresh, more motivated legs from his bench.
“Is that… Luka Garza??”
Luka Garza sighting pic.twitter.com/yrPVlDDlHX
— Sam LaFrance (@SamLaFranceNBA) December 21, 2025
It sure was.
Garza checked in for his first first-quarter minutes since his Nov. 26 start against the Detroit Pistons. In other words, he nearly went from Thanksgiving to Christmas without seeing the floor in the opening 12 minutes of a game.
Saturday’s performance was enough to make you ask, “Why not?”
It was as if he spent the past month like a phone that was just sitting on the charger waiting to be used. He was fully charged and ready to go.
Luka Garza had a momentum-shifting performance for the Celtics
As soon as the former College Player of the Year checked in, things started running smoothly for Boston. They immediately ripped off a 16-0 run, and it wasn’t by coincidence. Garza’s fingerprints were all over the momentum shift.
“When he came out, I thought he changed the game during the stretch he played with his physicality and his offensive rebounds,” Mazzulla explained postgame via CLNS Media. “He helped us come out as the more physical team tonight.”
He scored four quick points in his first three trips down the floor. As you’d imagine, the Celtics weren’t calling plays for him, either. Garza made his own luck, fought hard on the offensive glass, and earned Boston some extra possessions.
By the end of the first quarter, the former Iowa standout had already tallied six points and five rebounds, all of which were offensive. When he subbed out about four minutes into the second quarter, Boston had turned a four-point deficit into a 13-point lead.
His second half wasn’t nearly as impactful, but there were still some moments of brilliance sprinkled in there. As the Celtics were trying to pull away mid-way through the fourth quarter, Garza fought for positioning, snagged a Derrick White airball, and immediately drew a foul with two seconds remaining on the shot clock.
The big man sank both free throws for his third and fourth points of the final frame, in which he pulled in three more offensive boards.
Simply put, the man was a menace.
Garza finished with a double-double, logging 12 points and 10 rebounds (nine offensive) against the Raptors.
For him to make this sort of impact after spending most of the past month watching from the sidelines is remarkable. Saturday was the first time that Garza saw over 20 minutes of playing time since Nov. 18, yet there’s no way you could’ve deduced that from watching his performance. There was no rust, no lack of conditioning, and no significant mental lapses.
The only hint that he’d been sitting throughout the majority of Boston’s recent 13-4 stretch was the starvation in his game. Garza clearly wanted to leave no doubt that he’s able to impact winning for Boston.
“It’s really a credit to the player development staff and Luka for just staying ready and trusting our process of winning,” Mazzulla praised.