The Golden State Warriors were back on the court Thursday night following the NBA All-Star break. They hosted the Boston Celtics in a rematch of the 2022 NBA Finals. While Stephen Curry is out with a knee injury, the Warriors finally got a new star in the lineup.
Kristaps Porzingis made his Golden State debut on Thursday.
Upon checking in on the game and being announced on PA, Porzingis received praise From the crowd of domestic warriors.
Kristaps Porzingis checks in with the Warriors for the first time
(via @kenzofuku) pic.twitter.com/7QVLufl6Ym
- ClutchPoints (@clutchpoints) 20 February 2026
The Warriors traded with the Atlanta Hawks for Porzingis before the NBA trade deadline. It was an interesting move, especially given Golden State's position in the Western Conference. Curry's subsequent knee injury has certainly made his stride a bit worse.
Nevertheless, the Latvian big man will certainly make a positive impact.
On Thursday night, the Warriors hosted the Celtics team with whom Porzingis won his only championship. Boston won the NBA title two seasons ago, with Porzingis making a big impact despite missing time due to injury.
Injuries have wreaked havoc throughout his career. The 10-year veteran has only played 18 games this season, missing time for a variety of reasons. He has missed 16 to 39 games in each of the last nine seasons of his career.
But Warriors coach Steve Kerr is highly optimistic that Porzingis will be able to make solid contributions the rest of the season. Unfortunately for the Dubs, the Celtics are getting the best of Golden State.
At the time of this writing, Boston led by 23 points at halftime. Porzingis has five points in seven minutes played.
