The defending NBA champion Boston Celtics have been inconsistent recently, but their veteran center, Kristaps Porzingis, has been on a roll. Porzingis will aim to continue his strong play when Boston opens a three-game road trip with a visit to the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday night.
The Celtics had split their previous 12 games before an easy 122-100 home victory against the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday. Porzingis continued his torrid January by tying a career high with eight 3-pointers made, on 14 attempts, and scoring a season-high 34 points1. Porzingis has made 54.1 percent of his 3-point attempts over the last nine games, a dramatic improvement from the 32.9 percent he had been shooting through Jan. 7.
Boston is still trying to hit its stride, though it still has the second-best record in the Eastern Conference entering Thursday. Porzingis’s current surge could be the spark the Celtics need to regain their championship form.
Jaylen Brown complemented Porzingis’s sharp shooting against the Bulls. Both made 10-of-18 field-goal attempts, and Brown finished with 28 points despite hitting only 1 of 5 tries from 3-point range.
The Celtics had a close call against the Pelicans during a 120-119 home victory on Jan. 121. New Orleans had a chance to win but fell short when CJ McCollum missed a contested layup in the final seconds.
Like Porzingis, McCollum had a notable 3-point performance Wednesday night. He made three triples to break the Pelicans’ franchise record with 629, surpassing current Celtics guard Jrue Holiday.
McCollum’s final trey on Wednesday came at the last second of the fourth quarter, but it left New Orleans on the short end of a 137-136 final against visiting Dallas.
The loss to the Mavericks was the Pelicans’ fourth straight defeat, though New Orleans did match its season-high point total.
Entering Thursday, New Orleans ranks tied for 23rd in the league in 3-point attempts per game (35.3) and tied for 24th in 3-point percentage (34.5). Boston, meanwhile, leads the league in 3-point attempts per game (48.6) and is tied for 12th in 3-point percentage (36.5).
