Dub Hub: Kristaps Porzingis displays on his Warriors’ debut vs. Celtics

In at present’s Dub Hub:

• Kristaps Porzingis displays on his Warriors’ debut in 121–110 loss to the Celtics.
• The San Francisco Normal’s Tim Kawakami sits down with Warriors proprietor Joe Lacob to debate Jonathan Kuminga, Draymond Inexperienced, and extra.
• In keeping with ESPN’s Shams Charania, the NBA is contemplating new anti-tanking measures for subsequent season.

Kristaps Porzingis made his Golden State Warriors debut Thursday night time in opposition to the Boston Celtics. Whereas the workforce’s latest massive man confirmed some indicators of rust after almost a month away from recreation motion, he stated afterward that he’s feeling good regardless of being “removed from excellent form.”

Porzingis completed with 12 factors in 17 minutes, capturing 5-of-9 from the sphere, together with one rebound, one help, and one block. He additionally dedicated two turnovers — one thing head coach Steve Kerr stated is to be anticipated because the 7-foot-2 middle continues adjusting to the Warriors’ system.

For now, the numbers matter much less for Porzingis — particularly with out Stephen Curry out there. He settled in as the sport went on, hitting deep threes and providing rim safety when the chance was there.

If that development continues, Porzingis might shortly change into a key piece for a workforce seeking to discover its footing and make a late push towards the postseason.

For extra on this and different information across the NBA, right here is our newest information round-up for Friday, February twentieth:

Warriors Information:

What we realized as Kristaps Porzingis debuts in Warriors’ loss to Celtics | NBC Sports activities Bay Space

It didn’t matter if it was off the dribble or from cuts, the Celtics’ offense made burnt toast out of the Warriors’ protection. It didn’t matter if it was the glass, the paint or making an attempt to go body-on-body, Boston owned the trenches. The Warriors watched the Celtics assert themselves and didn’t have any solutions. 

Within the first quarter, by which the Warriors solely trailed by 4 factors, the Celtics doubled them in rebounds (16 to eight) and scored 10 extra factors within the paint (18 to eight). By halftime, by which the Warriors now had been dealing with a 23-point deficit, the Celtics had 24 rebounds to the Warriors’ 14 and doubled them in factors within the paint, 32 to 16. 

Kawakami: Joe Lacob on Porzingis, buying and selling Kuminga, and why the Warriors received’t tank | The San Francisco Normal

Might you might have gotten extra for Kuminga in case you’d seemed exhausting to commerce him a 12 months or two in the past?

“I don’t suppose so,” Lacob stated. “Folks say I cherished him as a participant, I used to be defending him, I used to be no matter. That’s simply not true. I did like him. I like all our gamers. In any other case, we wouldn’t be buying them if we didn’t all like them. However , it simply didn’t work. It seemed prefer it was going to work. It was on and off quite a bit.”

My sit-down interview with Steph Curry | NBA Immediately

NBA Information:

NBA plans to enact anti-tanking guidelines subsequent season, sources say | ESPN

Sources with information of Thursday’s assembly in addition to a late January competitors committee assembly instructed ESPN that these ideas have been mentioned to curb tanking:

• First-round draft picks might be protected just for top-four or top-14-plus alternatives
• Lottery odds freeze on the commerce deadline or a later date
• Not permitting a workforce to choose within the high 4 in consecutive years and/or after consecutive bottom-three finishes
• Groups can’t decide within the high 4 the 12 months after making the convention finals
• Lottery odds allotted primarily based on two-year information
• Lottery prolonged to incorporate all play-in groups
• Flatten odds for all lottery groups

Cade Cunningham’s 42 factors vs. Knicks leads Pistons to fourth-straight win

In case you missed it at Golden State of Thoughts:

Warriors vs. Celtics participant grades: Kristaps Porziņģis debuts

Will Richard

24 minutes, 17 factors, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 3 fouls, 6-for-11 capturing, 3-for-7 threes, 2-for-2 free throws, 71.5% TS, -13

Richard had an enormous sequence within the first quarter. After Boston had pushed the result in 10 factors, Richard drained threes on each ends of the two-for-one to finish the body, getting the Dubs proper again into it. The workforce couldn’t preserve that efficiency, however Richard did. He was one in every of their greatest offensive weapons, and his protection was swarming. I’m trying ahead to seeing how he finishes out his extremely profitable rookie marketing campaign.

Grade: A

A publish to finish the week:

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