One of the biggest story lines entering the 2024 NBA Finals is the return of Kyrie Irving to the city of Boston. There promises to be animosity between the two sides starting with the first game on Thursday evening, and the boos directed at the player are predicted to be deafening.
Porziņģis Will Hear Boos During NBA Finals
“They do not like Porzingis in Dallas… Luka did not like playing with him, there is an actual beef there…” – Chandler Parsons on Kristaps Porzingis
Parsons predicted Porzingis to get booed every time he touches the ball.
— Noah Weber (@noahweber00) June 3, 2024
But Irving isn’t the only player in the championship series who will be drawing the ire of opposing fans. Celtics’ big man Kristaps Porziņģis will be making a return to one of his former homes when the series shifts to Dallas, as he spent 2.5 seasons trying to make things work with Luka Dončić on the Mavericks.
Porzingis’ time in Dallas was mostly a failure. He was a solid scoring option at 20 points per game in his 134 contests, but the team couldn’t make it over the hump with him as their second fiddle, losing in the first round in both of his full seasons with the Mavericks.
Celtics Could Be At Full Strength For First Time Since April
Adding Porzingis back to this playoff run is going to be special pic.twitter.com/PwCjQtCiV7
— Celtics Junkies (@Celtics_Junkies) June 3, 2024
There wasn’t the type of bad blood between Porziņģis and the fan base that we have seen on the other side with Kyrie Irving, but the Dallas crowd will still likely be unfriendly, at least according to Chandler Parsons’ predictions on FanDuel TV.
Don’t get it twisted, they do not like Porzingis in Dallas. Luka did not like playing with him, there is an actual beef there. Every time he gets the ball, he’s getting booed.
There have been questions surrounding Porzingis and his availability for the upcoming NBA Finals. The big man for the Celtics hasn’t played since Game 4 of the first round series against the Miami Heat, which took place well over a month ago. Boston will have enjoyed 9 full days off by the time Game 1 of the championship series rolls around on Thursday, which should have given Porziņģis ample time to recover, as there were rumors that he was thinking about a return during the Eastern Conference Finals.
The Celtics will be listed as the favorites, both for Game 1 and for the series overall. The spread for the first game is currently sitting at 6.5 points in favor of the home team, and the designation on the series is listed at -210.
