Celtic: Porzingis' rise and successThis season, the Celtics are on a winning streak. Since beating the Lakers in the Christmas game, they have won three in a row and are 23-6, the highest in the league. The team has a number of outstanding players, including the duo Tatum and Jaylen Brown, veterans Holiday and Horford are still playing well, and Derrick White is also playing close to All-Star level. And the performance of Porzingis, the pillar of the interior line, has also attracted attention.
Porzingis returned to play 35 minutes against the Lakers, shooting 11-of-19 from the field, 2-of-8 from three-point range, and 4-of-7 from the free-throw line, contributing 28 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocks, and conceded only one shot on the inside. He scored a team-high in points, rebounds, and blocks, and went out with a plus/minus of +16, tied with White for the highest in the game. The key to winning this game was in the third quarter, where the Celtics scored 41 points in a single quarter, once again widening the score gap, and finally stabilizing the victory.
Porzingis also performed very well in this quarter, scoring 13 points in a single quarter. So far this season, Porzingis has played in 21 games for the Celtics, averaging 30 per game4 minutes, 196 points 71 rebound 17 assists 18 blocks and 53 three-point shooting3%/34.3%/82.1% and 23 percent of the ball1%, and the true hit rate reached 658%。
In comparison, when he played for the Wizards last season, Porzingis averaged 232 points 84 rebounds and 27 assists 15 blocks and 49 three-point shooting8%/38.5%/85.1% and 27 ball possession2% and a true hit rate of 627%。Porzingis played at a career-best last season, scoring a career-high and shooting above 60 percent for the first time.
If it weren't for the Wizards' poor record, Porzingis would have had every chance of being an All-Star. His rise has breathed new life into Celtic's success, while also bringing more to the expectations of fans. New article: Porzingis' metamorphosis: Time flies from fall to recovery, year after year, and people and things on the pitch change. This season, Porzingis' positioning has changed dramatically.
Compared with last season, he is no longer the team's top two or even top three ball possession points, and the ball use rate has dropped a lot. The number of touches is from 602 times reduced to 471 time, the time of holding the ball also increased from 18 minutes reduced to 12 minutes, the number of shots from 157 times reduced to 124 times, the score also fell below 20 points. However, all this did not lose his shine, on the contrary, his scoring efficiency reached the highest level of his career. This is all thanks to better teammates and more rational tactics.
Porzingis' shooting percentage and true shooting percentage are both career-high, far ahead of the previous high. Under the basket, Porzingis is currently shooting 69 of 84 from the field, shooting a whopping 821%。In addition to his efficient output on the offensive end, Porzingis' performance on the defensive end was equally astounding. An average of 19 can interfere with opponents per game1 shot, the sixth highest in the league.
At the same time, he can make opponents shoot from 55 to 51% down to 479% and 3-point shooting percentage from 370% down to 359%。At 10 feet inside, the opponent's shooting percentage went from 586% down to 479%。It can be said that Porzingis' defense is both qualitative and quantitative. High-level data can also reflect the influence of Porzingis.
His BPM is currently 48, ranked 19th in the league;EPM is 40, ranked 22nd in the league;Every 48 minutes ws is 0214, ranked 6th in the league. The stats show that Porzingis is even more influential than his former teammate and MVP candidate Doncic. This metamorphosis is reminiscent of Porzingis' time with the Mavericks. At that time, Porzingis was not very good, mainly because the attack was not stable and efficient. As an insider, he only has 563% true hit rate. In the Mavericks' final year, they shot just 28 percent from three-point range3%, true hit rate 561%, which does not play a role in opening up space, and the inside line does not punish misalignment. In addition, his injury problems are also a problem. In his three-and-a-half-year spell for the Mavericks, Porzingis played in just 134 games, missing more games than he played, and playing just 10 games in the playoffs combined.
The transformation of Porzingis is not only a digital improvement, but also a change in spirit and attitude. He sought in adversity and grew in grinding. Today, his path to recovery is an inspiring story. This story teaches us that no matter what difficulties we encounter, as long as we don't give up, there will always be a bright path. With a controversial deal, Porzingis has been the focus of discussion among fans lately.
Two years ago, he was sent to the Wizards by the Mavericks, who only got Dinwiddie and Bertans, didn't have any draft picks, and even got a second-round pick. The deal revealed how bad things were for then-Mavericks player Porzingis. However, to this day, Porzingis' form has been on the rise year by year, especially this season. He seems to have found his position, no longer throwing long-range balls inefficiently, but more on the inside to maintain efficient scoring.
While his three-point shooting percentage hasn't returned to its best, his true shooting percentage is close to 66 percent, which is remarkable. What's more, the Celtics' longest-serving five-man lineup this season (consisting of Tatum, Brown, White, Holiday and Porzingis) has played in 16 games and won 15 of them.
This lineup has an offensive efficiency of 1222. The defensive efficiency is 1025. The net outfit of the opponent in 100 rounds is as high as 196 points, which can be described as quite impressive. In basketball, the importance of a core combination of players cannot be overstated. Last season's Nuggets proved it. Now, the Celtics have a similar lineup, and as long as they stay healthy, they are definitely a serious contender for a championship.
As for Porzingis, he is constantly shaping his style of play this season and adapting to his new role. Although it may have meant that he lost some scoring opportunities, he gained more recognition and his scoring became more efficient. The Celtics have been competing for a championship in recent years, but have always missed out on success. Hopefully, Porzingis can be the player who can change the fortunes of Celtic and bring more success to the team.