Hardwood Houdini
Fansided

Marquee Boston Celtics offseason acquisition sends message on why he didn't win with one of NBA's brightest stars

The marquee splash of the Boston Celtics' offseason sent a message on why he didn't win with one of the NBA's brightest stars at one of his former stops.

By Andrew Hughes

Dec 7, 2021; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (right) and center Kristaps
Dec 7, 2021; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (right) and center Kristaps / Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
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Kristaps Porzingis sent a strong message about his time alongside Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks and why, unlike his time with the Boston Celtics alongside Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown so far, it didn't work out during a December 6 appearance on the Old Man and The Three podcast.

“It’s a mix of many things,” Porzingis told JJ Redick when pressed about his Mavs tenure not producing any substantial playoff success. “Maturity for sure — and I’m talking about what I could have done better. Better maturity for sure, and I wasn’t that much into analytics and numbers. If somebody at that stage of my career presented it to me the right way and said, ‘This is what we need to do; this is what we need from you; you’re way more effective doing this,’ and explained it to me better, I think that would have made a difference a little bit.

“I think we both tried to make it work. It’s just, I think communication, maturity on both of our parts should have been better.”

Lack of chemistry 'appear not to be of any concern' for Kristaps Porzingis and Boston Celtics teammates

MassLive's Brian Robb is in agreement with the Houdini, and the reality of the current Eastern Conference standings: the Celtics are not suffering the same issues with Porzingis that Doncic did in Dallas.

"Those issues appear not to be of any concern for Porzingis in Boston as he meshes with All-Star teammates Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Jrue Holiday," Robb wrote.

Porzingis has only twice played alongside All-NBA talents, well besides the 42 games Bradley Beal and the Latvian shared the court during a lost 2022-23 season with the Washington Wizards. The Mavericks weren't an ideal situation, but Porzingis was transitioning from being the star of the New York Knicks to the second-wheel behind Doncic. After losing, and perhaps some humility accompanying it, in D.C., Porzingis came to the Celtics accepting his role as the Chris Bosh to Tatum and Brown's LeBron James/Dwyane Wade.

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