BAH GOD THAT'S KRISTAPS PORZINGIS MUSIC!!!!
Elsa. Getty Images.LET'S. FUCKING. GOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!
Even though all signs were pointing to this reality, it feels different now that we got the Shams bomb that Porzingis is actually going to be ready to roll for Game 1 on Thursday night. Before it still felt like wishful thinking mostly because nobody was leaking anything. All we really had was footage of KP knocking down practice shots
but outside of that, all you could do was continue to pray to the Basketball Gods that KP would actually be ready. Joe wasn't saying shit, Brad wasn't saying shit, the players weren't saying shit, it was as top secret as top secret gets.
So to now know that KP has played in scrimmages (good enough for me!) and came out OK is the exact type of news I think we were all hoping for as we inch closer and closer to the start of the Finals. Now, we can officially allow our brains to remember what is being added to a team that has won 7 straight games and is 12-2 this postseason.
The 7'2 basketball unicorn is back baby!!
KP has been out so long I feel like people have forgotten what a two way difference maker he has been this season. He's the cheat code. He's the piece that helps make the Celts scheme proof. He can guard in space, he can guard in drop, he protects the rim without fouling, he can shoot from 35 ft, he can shoot from the midrange, he can score from the post, he can get to the FT line, he can pass, I mean just watch that highlight video!
Against a team like the Mavs, this is obviously very important. How do you eliminate their rim protection? You bring their centers out 35ft. Life is a whole lot different guarding someone like Rudy Gobert than it is Kristaps Porzingis. No more packing the paint and limiting drives like they did against MIN when you are being spread out by an offense that thas 5 elite three point shooters.
This also gives us the KP/Jaylen 2 man game which was a huge part of why the Celts were so much better this year in the non-Tatum minutes. Before, those moments were a bit of a death wish. It often led to Jaylen playing hero ball or with blinders on, but that all changed this year once you gave him a new 7'2 best friend to play off of. Winning the non-Tatum minutes in the Finals is going to be so important, and the Celts are now adding their biggest weapon which helps them do just that.
The health will always be a concern, but even at 80% of the KP we got during the year it makes a world of difference. Once you get to this stage things become about matchups, and there is no matchup solve for Kristaps Porzingis. Not when you pair him with the rest of this offense. Maybe this is just me getting hammered on Celts Kool Aid, but what if KP has been fine this whole time and the team simply put him on ice because they didn't need him? I mean, he was brought in for the NBA Finals and here we are. Is it possible this was a Grade 1 sprain and he healed a long time ago? I'm not ruling that out.
So even though I think we all had a feeling this was going to be the case, now that it's official I think it's finally time to allow yourself to get excited. All year long from September until now every Celtics fan wished for the same thing
"Just let us see this team healthy and whole in a Finals"
Well, here we are. The Celtics are healthy and whole, and the Finals start in 2 days.
Let us pray.