Boston Celtics fans everywhere had to do a double-take after the team’s first timeout in Saturday’s 112-96 win (without Jaylen Brown) over the Toronto Raptors. Head coach Joe Mazzulla made a hockey-like substitution, swapping the four Celtics not named Payton Pritchard in favor of some fresh, more motivated legs from his bench.
“Is that… Luka Garza??”
— Sam LaFrance (@SamLaFranceNBA) December 21, 2025
It sure was.
Garza checked in for his first first-quarter minutes since his Nov. 26 start against the Detroit Pistons. In other words, he nearly went from Thanksgiving to Christmas without seeing the floor in the opening 12 minutes of a game.