All too frequently, Luke Kornet is written off as the “funny guy.” The guy with the strange parties. The one with the hilarious interview style. the person after whom we named an original contest. Indeed, Luke Kornet embodies each of those qualities. Even with his eccentricities off the court and his occasionally odd appearance on it, Luke Kornet is a respectably skilled NBA basketball player. The fact that Kornet is a functional backup centre has long been recognised. When called upon, Kornet has continuously contributed to the Celtics’ bench minutes over the last two regular seasons. In the words of Bill Belichick, “He does his job.” However, it was legitimate to wonder if Luke could genuinely compete when it mattered most. Is he able to play through the postseason? Even though the sample size is tiny, Kornet’s performance against the Heat in Game 5 gave us new insight that implies Kornet is more than simply a stopgap player until Kristaps Porzingis returns. He is a talented player who can make the difference for this club in crucial situations. He’s too valuable to be used off the court, so that won’t be happening.Luke’s most noteworthy accomplishment in Game 5 was limiting Bam Adebayo, who was Miami’s greatest hope for any offensive consistency during the series, to 2–10 shooting on primarily midrange shots. No other Boston big was able to disrupt Bam the way Kornet did, at least not as successfully as Luke, with his size and length.Here, Bam tries to use his variety of jab steps and pump fakes to get Kornet to compete, but Luke doesn’t give in. He does his job; it’s obvious that he’s focused on the scouting report. Using his length, Kornet gets a near-perfect contest on a shot that Bam usually makes with ease. Bam’s shoulder could have moved a less seasoned Kornet out of position, but not this particular Green Kornet. superb defensive performance against a formidable attacking talent. Here’s where Kornet truly demonstrates his development:. He stays ahead of one of the league’s most agile big men by sliding his feet, and then he steals the shoulder from Bam—while reversing course, mind you—while still raising his hand to block the shot. Kornet is playing with such strength and tenacity these days, and it’s amazing to watch. Fantastic work keeping down here. While a lot of large guys would fall for these up-fakes, Kornet has a remarkable sense of when Bam is going to fire. He maintains his composure and wins a very strong match on the final Adebayo stroke. A player like Bam Adebayo—someone smaller, quicker, and more compact than Luke Kornet—would have terrified me if he had been guarding. He would have been able to draw him away from the paint. However, Kornet maintained his position, both physically and mentally. On that end of the floor, he appeared to be in good shape. Even though we usually consider Kornet to be a non-factor offensively, there are a few things he does that significantly contribute to the Celtics’ offensive efficiency. And once more, seeing him perform that move in the last moments of a playoff game was unique, even if we had witnessed it throughout the regular season. Luke can pass well. Kornet makes a great feed off the short-roll pass in this instance. Making decisions quickly and decisively, as well as having a keen awareness of his teammates’ advantages. He can move a ball. In addition, he is a superb screener, which will undoubtedly help him in both the regular season and the postseason. This exemplifies Kornet’s exceptional comprehension of screening angles. Luke just sits there and allows Jalen McDaniels serve as a screener since he believes that McDaniels is attempting to sabotage the play by preventing Luke from making contact with Payton Pritchard’s defender. Then, at the ideal moment, he exits the screen and rolls to the edge. In the Celtics’ second-round series, Luke should continue to play most, if not all, of the backup centre minutes, regardless of who they face. When facing these opponents, Kornet can either play the big man, who won’t be much of a shooter (Wendell Carter Jr., Mo Wagner, Jarrett Allen, Evan Mobley), or he can hide defensively on a non-shooting wing (Gary Harris, Isaac Okoro). Regardless of the opponent, he will have a better matchup in Round Two, as he has already proven he can hold his own against Bam Adebayo. Luke will not be leaving. Indeed, this could be the start of his ascent to prominence on the national scene.
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