Luke Kornet had a career-high 16 rebounds tonight. The San Antonio Spurs playing without a center opened up Luke Kornet and Kristaps Porzingis’ games tonight. But this dominance almost ended prematurely. You see, Kristaps ended the night with 5 personal fouls. As you already know, 6 gets you thrown out. So, Kornet had to make some adjustments on the fly.

The Celtics continued their dominant run tonight against the Spurs, beating them 121-111. And even though it was Jayson Tatum who led the team in scoring, players like Kornet and Porzingis decided the game tonight with their rebounding. And after the game tonight, he talked to the media about how he made sure the team didn’t lose their dominance over both backboards.

“You sort of have to adjust on the fly. And, I think that’s just a lot of fun to be able to be out there for long stretches and to help us try to get the win. So, yeah. You get more tired. That happens,” revealed Kornet. It seems Kornet has no qualms about putting in extra effort as long as it helps the team to get the W. But his reasons may have been a little selfish. That’s because he also admitted to how he enjoyed playing with Kristaps tonight.

“I mean, it’s honestly a lot of fun playing with him…I feel he’s a great passer too…. He’s like doubling stuff. I feel like it’s a lot of fun. Yeah, I mean, it’s an easy place to play,” he revealed. And the fact that he was having fun on the court tonight translated to his game.  Kornet’s hustle meant that the two ran riot over the Spurs players despite Kristaps being on the precipice of an ejection for a sizeable chunk of this game.

And their coach, Joe Mazzulla appreciated the shifts KP and Kornet put in tonight. Here’s what the Celtics head coach said.

Joe Mazzulla reveals his thoughts behind the Kristaps Porzingis and Luke Kornet pairing

Luke Kornet is by no means a starter for the Boston Celtics. Even so, he’s an important player. And tonight just furthered that notion. In that vein, Joe Mazzulla, the Celtics’ head coach, revealed why he chose to pair the two big men tonight. And it has little to do with the Spurs being forced to play small ball due to Victor Wembanyama’s absence.

“Yeah. I mean, it just gives us a different identity. You know, they’re it gives us, you know, a presence offensively and forces the other team to match up with us differently than they would have if only one of them was out there. And, you know, they’re both dynamic defensively in their own way,” said Mazzulla. And it is true, the Spurs didn’t know what hit them tonight owing to the big men’s linkup play.

He also gave Kristaps and Luke credit for what they added to the Celtics’ game tonight, admitting that he just likes seeing them on the court together. “KP’s rim protection, Luke’s ability to navigate different, matchups and different coverages. So it just gives us, something different. But, you know, I enjoy watching those two play.”

Tonight was a very successful night out at the AT&T Center for the Celtics. They’ve now extended their winning streak to 8 and seem to be peaking just in time for the postseason. Will we see this pairing more regularly in the playoffs? Only time will tell. But we can’t wait to find out!