Porzingis had 18 points, five assists, four rebounds, and two blocks while shooting 6/12 from the floor and 3/5 from three-point range. Dallas had the interesting strategy of defending him with P.J. Washington and having Daniel Gafford on Jrue Holiday. It almost worked, as Porzingis and Holiday were the two lowest scorers of Boston’s starters.

Porzingis said of his return, “It is my first time [playing in Dallas again], it’s weird… It was good. It’s always a nice atmosphere here. I have some good memories from here, and not good, GREAT relationships here with many people. I miss a lot of these nice people. It’s always good to come back.”

Dallas traded for Porzingis in a blockbuster trade in 2019, believing he could be the perfect co-star to their budding rookie superstar Luka Doncic, and signed him to an immediate long-term deal. They had some on-court success together but could never get out of the first round of the playoffs, and the fit was a little clunkier than they would’ve wanted. He also dealt with a lot of injuries.

That led to the Mavericks essentially salary-dumping Porzingis to the Washington Wizards at the 2022 trade deadline for Spencer Dinwiddie and Davis Bertans. Dallas made the Western Conference Finals that season, while Porzingis would be traded to Boston before the 2023-24 season, instantly turning the Celtics from a title contender to the heavy title favorite. He had missed each of the last four games he could’ve played in Dallas because of injury, including Games 3 and 4 of last year’s NBA Finals.