Summarize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs in Arabic <\/p>\n
BOSTON \u2014 Kristaps Porzingis has seen it all in his nine NBA years. A roller coaster can\u2019t quite describe the journey from booed to beloved to injured to villainized to embraced to injured to embarrassed to forgotten to center stage of the NBA Finals.<\/p>\n
And it started, appropriately, when Knicks fans jeered him on draft night in 2015 \u2014 a moment he used as motivation to prove the detractors wrong.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was a kid full of just ignorance and ready to take on the world,\u201d Porzingis said in an interview with The Post. \u201cWhich is adequate for those kind of years. But now I\u2019m much more mature and have a different kind of mindset. And I\u2019m in a perfect situation for me which is what I wanted from the beginning \u2014 to play on the biggest stage for a championship. Nothing else.\u201d<\/p>\n
Porzingis is back in the spotlight Thursday for Game 1 of the NBA Finals, the X factor of the series with storylines percolating about his health, failed stint in Dallas and an alleged rocky relationship with Luka Doncic. The center is returning from a 10-game absence because of a calf strain and the prevailing sentiment is the Celtics are unbeatable if he\u2019s at 100 percent.<\/p>\n
Without Porzingis, they\u2019re still probably favored against the Mavericks. With him? Boston\u2019s frontcourt issues, its lone weak spot during a steamroll through the Eastern Conference, are theoretically alleviated.<\/p>\n
We\u2019ll see.<\/p>\n
Porzingis doesn\u2019t even know what to expect after sitting five-plus weeks.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt will be tough to jump into the Finals like this,\u201d he said. \u201cI did everything I could to prepare for it and we\u2019ll see [in Game 1].\u201d<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, Porzingis returning from an injury is hardly new. He\u2019s accustomed to the process. Ailments and surgeries sabotaged his stints in New York and Dallas. The difference in Boston is he\u2019s a complementary piece \u2014 the fourth- or even fifth-best player \u2014 and his presence merely enhances the ride, rather than drives it.<\/p>\n
For a player who burst on the scene with a \u201cUnicorn\u201d nickname and NYC\u2019s full attention, accepting that role required humility. And experience.<\/p>\n
He now sees the videos on his phone of Knicks fans celebrating victories with gusto on 33rd St. In another world not hard to imagine, they would\u2019ve been cheering for Porzingis. Instead, the hero is Jalen Brunson \u2014 Porzingis\u2019s former Mavericks teammate \u2014 and the former Unicorn is watching with amusement.<\/p>\n
\u201cNew Yorkers are crazy in the videos outside the arena when the Knicks win a game,\u201d Porzingis said. \u201cIt\u2019s one of my favorite things to watch, you know what I mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPlaying there is insane. I can compare it to here [in Boston]. These are two very strong fan bases. And I know how JB is enjoying, for sure. Just being the main guy and taking that team that far \u2014 it\u2019s got to be a special feeling for him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Porzingis saw those videos this season at 28 years old with a full beard. When a player on the Knicks, he was a baby-faced teenager with peach fuzz, zero muscle definition and a chip permanently attached to his shoulder. He was battling those boos on draft night. He was battling the demons of Euro draft busts. He was battling a highly dysfunctional organization. He was battling immaturity. He was navigating trade rumors and Phil Jackson\u2019s beef with Carmelo Anthony.<\/p>\n
By Porzingis\u2019 fourth season at MSG \u2014 with an All-Star appearance and ACL surgery in the rearview \u2014 he desperately wanted out. The Knicks \u2014 with president Steve Mills and GM Scott Perry spearheading clandestine negotiations \u2014 were also preparing to get rid of Porzingis before his formal trade demand in 2019.<\/p>\n
Porzingis was absolutely correct to demand a relocation, by the way. Some of his best years were getting dragged down by the Knicks\u2019 mess. He had four coaches in four years. The team was propping up pipe dreams and delusions while losing 65 games. That was the season David Fizdale compared Lance Thomas to Draymond Green and Emmanuel Mudiay\u2019s rim attacking to Dwyane Wade\u2019s.<\/p>\n
But there were aspects of the discontent Porzingis handled incorrectly. He\u2019ll admit that today. And the Knicks jumped on all of the mistakes to create a villain at the Garden.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt definitely helped me,\u201d Porzingis said Wednesday. \u201cYou find out it\u2019s easier when it\u2019s all positive. It\u2019s tougher when things don\u2019t go smooth. But that\u2019s when you learn even more, you know? I would not change the good or the bad moments for anything. It just made me who I am now and prepared me for this moment.\u201d<\/p>\n
Porzingis was talking about his stints in New York and Dallas, the latter of which is now among the most prevalent storylines of the NBA Finals. According to former Mavericks forward Chandler Parsons, Porzingis and Doncic \u201chad actual beef.\u201d<\/p>\n
Both players denied that. But they acknowledged their on-court fit was poor.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt wasn\u2019t just perfect for us playing together, it didn\u2019t work out, that\u2019s it. We moved on,\u201d Porzingis said. \u201cThere\u2019s no, like, ill will from their side, for sure from my side. I don\u2019t think there should be.\u201d<\/p>\n
That was another phase in Porzingis\u2019s career, among the missed opportunities. The next chapter \u2014 the NBA Finals \u2014 could tie it all together in a positive bow.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve been through a lot,\u201d Porzingis said before pausing. \u201cI\u2019ve been through a lot in my career.\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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