The Boston Celtics have made many battles against Bobby Portis. That includes facing the veteran power forward multiple times in the playoffs. He is known to be a thorn in their side.
In his 32 career regular-season games against Boston, the 11-year veteran is averaging more points and rebounds than he has for his career. Portis is producing 12.6 points and 8.1 rebounds per contest vs. the Celtics. He has registered 12.1 of the former and 7.1 of the latter for his career.
The Milwaukee Bucks forward knows Boston well. It's a franchise he has great respect for. And in a recent appearance on Run It Back on FanDuel TV, when asked by host Michelle Beadle who the best team he has faced this season is, the former Arkansas Razorback star pointed to the Celtics.
Bobby Portis believes the Celtics could win the championship
Explaining why he likes the field over the Oklahoma City Thunder, and why Boston is his sleeper team, the former first-round pick cited an aspect of the Celtics that is at the heart of them recently securing their 50th win for the fifth straight season.
Bobby Portis on the best NBA team he's faced this season:
— Run It Back (@RunItBackFDTV) March 30, 2026
"Boston."
👀☘️@BPortistime | @MichelleDBeadle | @ChandlerParsons | @TeamLou23 pic.twitter.com/WThHgNi40h
"My sleeper [is] Boston, though. My sleeper team is Boston to win the chip," said Portis. "Culture is everything to me, man. When you talk about, just guys that's been there, guys that's done it. Obviously, if Tatum don't get hurt last year, they might win Game 6 and go back to Game 7 in Boston, you never know. That's just the fruits of the labor in the NBA; injuries is real.
"So, them getting Tatum back. Obviously, keeping the second seed all season without Tatum and then getting him back. Gets Jaylen Brown a couple games to get a couple games off. Like I said, that 65-game rule, you get a couple games off. Now, Tatum [is] back, they might play against a stinker team, [like the] Washington Wizards. 'Let Tatum catch a rhythm; I'm gonna sit this one out.'"
To Portis's point, as Tatum continues to ramp up, he recently registered a season-high 32 points and dished out eight assists, the most in the matchup, in a 114-99 win over the Charlotte Hornets. In this author's opinion, it was the best he has looked offensively since returning.
It also happened to come on a night that Brown didn't play. Tatum's usage rate is still high when his running mate is in the lineup. However, to Portis's point, getting even more touches figures to help him shake off the rust as the playoffs approach.
"So, them guys [are] gonna be ready in the playoffs, and they [have] got a crazy system that allows them to be great," continued Portis. "So, my sleeper team [is] Boston, for sure. They [are] always a tough out, and guys always gotta bring their A game against them."