The remodeled Celtics were in for a difficult battle on their first game back, as they blew a double-digit lead against the Knicks but were able to come back and win the game in New York by a score of 108-104.

Jayson Tatum led the way for Boston with 34 points and 11 rebounds. The Celtics were able to build a lead of as many as 12 points in the first half thanks to a strong start from both Tatum and Kristaps Porzingis, who scored a combined 34 points in the first half on 13-of-22 shooting from the field.

After that moment, the 3-point shooting for Boston’s offense went completely ice cold, and Jaylen Brown had a number of costly turnovers in the fourth quarter, which allowed New York seize control of the game with a 7-0 run that broke open a 93-93 tie in the middle of the period. Immanuel Quickley, who came off the bench for the Knicks and scored 24 points, was a major spark for the team, as he outscored Boston’s whole bench by himself. However, Boston made a comeback in the final two minutes of the game to tie the game with an 8-2 run before New York put the game away with some big baskets from Porzingis and clutch free throws from Payton Pritchard.

After scoring 15 points in the first quarter, Porzingis struggled with his shot in the middle frames of the game before coming on strong in the fourth quarter. Porzingis finished with 30 points in his Boston debut but he struggled with his shot in the intermediate frames. His 30 points were the most that any player for the Celtics scored in their first game together.

The Celtics will kick off their season at TD Garden with their first home game on Friday night, when they take on the Heat.

Jayson Tatum got off to a strong start in his quest for the MVP award. The All-Star player helped his team get off to a fast start by establishing himself as the team leader in points (19), rebounds (6), and assists (2) in the first half of the game. He displayed some of his newfound strength in the post by using his size advantage to take advantage of lesser players, and he showed overall improvement in his shot selection despite attempting a third of Boston’s shots in the first half by himself. Tatum’s effort on the defensive end of the court was evident, as he was one of the few Celtics who battled well on the boards. The Knicks do not have many defenders who are able to keep up with him offensively. In addition to that, he started the second half with a 7-0 run of his own, which assisted the Celtics in regaining their double-digit lead, and then he assisted the Celtics in mounting a comeback in the fourth quarter.

On both sides of the spectrum, Kristaps Porzingis appears to be an ideal fit: The seven-footer played nearly the entirety of the first quarter and put on a show against one of his previous teams, scoring a game-high 15 points in the opening frame alone. He shot 5 of 8 from the field and 3 of 5 from beyond the arc, contributing to his game-high total. The big man with the accurate shooting took advantage of the attention that was paid to his All-Star teammates and also punished the Knicks centers when they were on their own.

However, it was his defense that stood out the most, as he recorded three blocks in the first half alone in addition to a number of great contests against a Knicks team that struggled to score in the paint (10-of-33 shooting from inside the arc in the first half). Perhaps even more than his offense, his defense was the highlight of the game. Porzingis will be tested more defensively on the perimeter against other teams, but he is exactly the type of defender that causes problems for a Knicks team that has a lot of players that like to get into the paint.

Jaylen Brown is having trouble finding his spots on the court: Brown has consistently served as a clear-cut second option for the C’s in previous seasons, but the dynamics have shifted for the wing player as a direct result of his supermax contract. Brown struggled to get his shot off early on while also attempting to take a couple more, and he ended up missing five of his first seven shots during the first half. Brown and the Celtics offense would be better suited to move the ball and create open looks if they had a wider variety of offensive weapons available to them to score with around him. However, there was a paucity of ball movement early on in this match (there were only nine assists), and Brown was a part of that issue. He got back on track with a couple of strong defensive plays in the second half of the game along with some big baskets to close out the third quarter, but it will take some time for him to rediscover his rhythm in the game.

The decision to start small by Boston, with Al Horford coming off the bench, suggests that going for the sweep is the game plan. In spite of this, Joe Mazzulla decided to play double bigs for the most of the game, countering the size of the Knicks with a consistent flow of Porzingis/Horford, Kornet/Horford, and Porzingis/Kornet front lines. It is debatable whether or not Kornet should be included in this rotation, but there is no disputing that the size and length of the Celtics caused the Knicks to have a lot of trouble finishing near the basket all night long. The Knicks failed to do so throughout the game. After all was said and done, the Celtics were able to get back into the game in the fourth quarter by playing Porzingis at center. Because of this, it will be intriguing to see how often the Celtics incorporate Porzingis into their starting lineup throughout the year.