Luke Kornet says quiet part out loud about new-look Celtics

Leaving Boston in free agency was perhaps the most difficult choice of Luke Kornet's career. His decision came down to re-signing with the Celtics or joining the San Antonio Spurs. One option offered comfort and familiarity. It was the chance to build on an ascent that took him from the G League to an NBA champion and a top role player at his position. The other afforded him the chance to start a new chapter with another potential title contender.

The Texas native ultimately chose to head home. He signed a four-year, $41 million deal. At 30, this was likely his best opportunity to cash in. It's also a pact that gives him the chance to build on what he achieved in Boston within another exemplary infrastructure. That doesn't mean his decision was easy.

"It was just a lot of conversations with my wife, and honestly, a lot of prayer," shared Kornet after shootaround before facing his former team for the first time, when discussing how he chose between the two. "Through [our] conversations, a realization of where we are in life. And I mean, it was very, very difficult to leave, and a lot of relationships, but I think just kind of feeling like [I'm] in a different part of life, and being open to wherever God willed us."

Once his choice became clear, "you just sort of accept it and take that step forward and just try to keep figuring it out from there."

What Luke Kornet is seeing from the Celtics

When the ninth-year center picked the Spurs, John Hollinger, the former vice president of basketball operations for the Memphis Grizzlies, deemed it one of the smartest moves any franchise made this offseason.

Kornet is validating that declaration. He is producing 8.4 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.4 blocks per game. He's playing just under 25 minutes per contest and has started in 21 of his 29 appearances.

The seven-foot-two center, who stabilized the first unit when Victor Wembanyama went down, can operate as the lone big on the floor or work in tandem with San Antonio's burgeoning star.

Kornet's helped the Spurs seize the second seed in the West. They have established they're a title contender, one that has beaten the reigning champion Oklahoma City Thunder all three times they've gone head-to-head this season.

The former Celtic, who sat courtside to watch them beat the Toronto Raptors and return to second in the East on Friday, is also happy to see what's happening in Boston.

"The energy and force and movement and chaos that they're playing with," said Kornet. "It's honestly been cool to see. And they play fast, and free, and aggressive, and I think a lot more, reacting live and stuff, which is cool to see. Obviously, there's a lot of smart players here, so [they have] the ability to do that. Obviously, Jaylen's been incredible, and I think everyone's assumed a larger role; Neemi's been awesome. So, it's been cool to see everybody take that next step for themselves and for the team."

The change that saved Luke Kornet's career

The former Vanderbilt standout still holds the NCAA record for three-pointers made by a player seven feet tall, knocking down 150 of his attempts behind the arc collegiately.

However, when he returned for his second stint with the Celtics, the organization approached him about changing his style of play at that end of the floor.

The idea of no longer being a three-point shooting, floor-spacing threat in the modern NBA could cause trepidation. Kornet could have rejected the proposal and ultimately wound up elsewhere. Instead, regardless of whatever concerns he may have had, he embraced it.

Doing so unlocked his full potential on offense. It allowed him to showcase his high basketball IQ. His ability to make plays out of dribble handoffs, set punishing screens, and what he represented as a threat rolling to the rim. Kornet's teammates can count on him to finish above or around the cylinder. And he's also a savvy passer when the read calls for him to kick the ball out.

The gifts he displayed while leaving his three-point shooting behind allowed him to partner with Jayson Tatum and form one of the NBA's top pick-and-roll tandems last season.

It was the catalyst of an evolution that surprised Kornet, whose focus was on making one more run at the NBA.

"Frankly, not really," said Kornet when asked if there was a moment he realized that stylistic switch could take his career to the level it has reached. "Honestly, if anything, it was just kind of about figuring out whatever could help. I don't feel like they were really adamant about it looking one way or the other, as much as just trying to fit in and help the team -- whatever way I was able to. So, I feel like, honestly, that's kind of what it was. And, obviously, we were able to have some success here, and it was awesome to be a part of.

"But yeah, I had no idea, I'd ultimately end up here. At the time, I was just trying to somehow figure out a way to stay in the NBA. When I came to Maine, it was just like, 'We'll see if we get another shot at this.' And, obviously, it's been able to have quite a run since then. So, I'm just thankful to be able to be playing each year, honestly, and just taking it for that, one at a time."

That focus on the present, his willingness to sacrifice, and what he did during his time with the Celtics after embracing a change that couldn't have been easy, has earned him a tribute video in his return to TD Garden.

All he asks is that it include his dominant performances at trivia competitions held in the team's weight room and training room. Plus, his "smear campaign" against Derrick White.

It captures the levity Kornet brought to the work environment. It's what Neemias Queta misses most about his friend and former teammate.

"Great guy, great person to be around," said Queta with a smile at Friday's shootaround before Boston beat Toronto. "I've got so many memories with him. And the main memory I get from him is just how funny it was. Like, just every day, how much he would come out here, lift everybody's spirits."

Now, Kornet's in San Antonio, bringing his trademark humor and two-way impact on the court to a fresh chapter in his home state. Teaming with Wembanyama, perhaps there's even another championship in his future. Not bad for a player whose second stint with the Celtics began with his NBA career at a crossroads.