Jan. 18, 2026, 9:50 p.m. ET
One of the bigger (no pun intended) surprises for the Boston Celtics this season has been the play of backup center Luka Garza this season. Signed by Boston in the 2025 offseason to help make up for the outgoing frontcourt talent in Luke Kornet, Al Horford, and Kristaps Porzingis, the rap on Garza from his time with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Detroit Pistons is that the Boston big man has issues with mobility, specifically his foot speed when it comes to defending smaller, more athletic players.
But Garza has shown himself a better cover than many expected so far this season for the Celtics, and has carved out a real role with Boston off the bench. Ahead of the Celtics’ recent blowout win vs. the Atlanta Hawks, Boston head coach Joe Mazzulla weighed in on what was fueling this leap from Garza. “He works really hard,” said Mazzulla via CLNS Media.
“So I think if someone ever tells him that he can’t do something, he’s probably going to work as hard as he can to make sure that gets fixed.”
“(That’s) who he is,” continued the Celtics coach. “So he’s got a particular skill set— his ability to shoot the ball, his ability to score, his ability to rebound. He has a great knack for getting in-traffic rebounds, which I think is something that’s hard to do.”
“And he works at the things that he’s not great at consistently. So he’s been really good for us and he’s got to continue to get better.”
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