Effort is a skill. Luka Garza exemplifies that. He isn't the most athletic player on the floor. However, he's always hustling. The six-foot-10 center pours everything he has into every possession.
Frankly, he has no choice. Garza is fighting for his NBA dreams. His relentless approach is the only way to achieve them. It's a reality he has had the self-awareness to know since he was a kid.
"I identified early on that I wasn't the most athletic guy, so I had to find a way to get an edge," shared Garza after the Boston Celtics' win over the Memphis Grizzlies in November. "So, every time I step on a basketball court, that's my mindset, is to play harder than the guy in front of me."
His perseverance has also required him to stay mentally strong in the most trying of times.
Garza earned multiple National Player of the Year honors while starring for the Iowa Hawkeyes. What did that lead to? Being a late second-round draft pick of the Detroit Pistons. A year later, they cut him.
"I was out of the league and had to take an E10 to try to make a team to get back in," said Garza after shining in the Celtics' 103-95 victory vs. the Indiana Pacers on Monday. "So, that moment just gave me a whole bunch more perspective on everything and understanding that, you know, at the end of the day, even if I'm not playing, or not in the rotation, I'm living my dream."
Luka Garza knew this opportunity was different
The fifth-year center signed with Boston because he knew it was his best opportunity to carve out his place in the NBA. That didn't mean there wasn't more adversity waiting for him there.
Garza went through 11 straight games of logging DNP-CDs or playing sparingly. He didn't flinch.
Luka Garza on staying the course when he was out of the Celtics’ rotation:
— Bobby Krivitsky (@BobbyKrivitsky) December 23, 2025
“I knew it was coming back, just the way Joe is mixing it up all the time. That's what I've always wanted in the past, and haven't been able to get unless there's an injury, or two guys are down, or… pic.twitter.com/fVQJ0C7eGH
"I knew it was coming back, just the way Joe is mixing it up all the time," he voiced after helping the Celtics rally past the Pacers and improve to 18-11. "That's what I've always wanted in the past, and haven't been able to get unless there's an injury, or two guys are down, or whatever it is. "So I knew it was coming back. It was just a matter of time, and I just wanted to make sure, when I got that chance, that I went out there and did everything I could to help the Celtics."
He did just that on Monday against Indiana. Garza logged 24 minutes, his second-most this season. He barely came off the floor after halftime. He was a part of a second-unit charge that erased a 20-point deficit and propelled Boston to its third straight win.
The soon-to-be 27-year-old from Washington, D.C., put six points on the board. He played one of his best games at the defensive end of the floor, in this author's opinion. However, where he shone brightest is the area he's at his best -- the one that exemplifies the passion he plays with and the all-out pursuit of his ambitions.
Garza grabbed nine rebounds. That includes five at the offensive end of the floor, the most in the matchup. What it excludes is when he draws a foul while crashing the glass, extending a possession that way.
The Pacers knew the scouting report. Everyone is well aware of his dogged pursuit of the rebound. However, they were the latest team that couldn't deny him in his chase.
"I have no option, [but] to go out there and [not] take my foot off the gas," said Garza. "I have to give everything I have, every moment I'm on the court. And that's been that way since I was a little kid. So I enjoy playing a game that way."
Two days earlier, he earned a season-high 26 minutes. It's the second-most he has played in a game in his five-year career. Garza got his hands on nine offensive rebounds in that night's victory vs. the Toronto Raptors. He finished with 12 points, 10 rebounds, and a block.
What his performances in Boston's last two tilts speak to is a person who knew that in a savage, unforgiving league, to make it at the highest level of basketball, he was going to have to protect his state of mind.
"I feel like there's so much work that's done on the physical side of the game, and people don't talk about the work they have to put on the mental," said Garza after Monday's win. "For me, journaling, I'm meditating, I'm doing all sorts of things to try to keep my mental right, especially in those moments. That's where I have even more of a sense of urgency to work on it."
Those changes arrived while at a fork in the road. What it led to was an evolution into the most dominant collegiate player of his era.
"My sophomore year of college, I had a stretch where I was playing really well. Then, I followed that up -- [it] was, like, [the] best four games [of] my career. I followed it up with, like, the worst six, and I felt like I was always up and down, and so I needed to make a change," shared Garza. "And so that's when I started that offseason, when I started to implement that stuff, and I feel like it changed the course of my career."
Those steps he has taken to protect his mental health are essential to his ability to fight through his career adversity. It also helps to have a head coach who remains engaged with you when you're not playing.
"I think he's kind of made sure we all know that he's going to use every player in this locker room at one point or another," conveyed Garza. "There's gonna be stretches where he leans on different guys, but he likes to lean into the depth that we have. And so you kind of understand that. But yeah, there were conversations with Joe. He's always checking on me."
His work with assistant coach D.J. MacLeay, including in the film room, also helped ensure that Garza would maximize his next opportunity when it arrived. However, above all, the primary reason he has seized his last two chances is the heart and hustle that have defied every limitation placed in front of him.