Don’t come in Luke Kornet’s house.
Well, unless you want to get blocked by the Boston Celtics backup center.
Because on Wednesday night in Game 5 against the Knicks in Boston, Kornet blocked everything.
The former undrafted big fella from Vanderbilt played the most important game of his NBA career.
The Celtics were facing a win-or-go-home clash without Jayson Tatum. They also haven’t had a full-strength Kristaps Porzingis for essentially the whole series.
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Porzingis was replaced by Kornet to start the second half of Game 5. The Celtics didn’t need him (Porzingis played just 12 minutes). Kornet was that good.
“I’m just trying to be aggressive, obviously backs against the wall,” Kornet said in a TNT interview after the third quarter. “Just make every effort, make every play.”
Kornet’s final stats on the night:
- 10 points
- 9 rebounds (2 offensive)
- 7 blocks
- 1 assist
- 1 steal
- 5-5 FG
- +20
- 26 minutes
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His block total was a career-high for any game, regular season or postseason. It goes down as the third-most blocks ever off the bench in a playoff game. The last player to record more blocks in an elimination game was Dikembe Mutombo in 1994.
It’s hard to overstate how good Kornet was. He was so good that TNT's Reggie Miller compared him to Rockets legend Hakeem Olajuwon.
Whenever the Knicks had a chance to score inside, the 7-foot-1 center with arms that seem even longer was there.
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He also polished off everything at the offensive end, making all five of his field goal attempts. And he’s always a super impactful offensive rebounder thanks to his instincts, length and effort that help him either grab the ball or keep it alive so a teammate can get it.
Every lengthy playoff run requires an unsung hero.
There’s no guarantee Boston keeps going more than another game.
But the Celtics get at least one more chance to take the floor this season. And it’s because Luke Kornet played the game of his life.
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