The former Celtics big man signed a 4-year, $41 million contract with the San Antonio Spurs this week.
Luke Kornet was officially introduced as a member of the San Antonio Spurs on Monday, and the former Celtics big man shed some light on his decision to leave the Celtics in free agency.
“I’m grateful for all the time that I had in Boston,” Kornet told reporters in San Antonio, per the Spurs. “I feel like it was a really appropriate place for the last several years and grateful for all the opportunity that it was. But, just kind of felt led, and then throughout the process, just felt like San Antonio was really the place that kind of had everything that we hoped for.”
Kornet signed a 4-year, $41 million contract with the Spurs after the best season of his NBA career with the Celtics, in which he averaged 6 points and 5.3 rebounds in 18.6 minutes, all career-highs. What the Celtics offered Kornet hasn’t been explicitly reported, but it is unlikely that they were able to match the Spurs’ offer, considering their current financial situation and reported desire to get below the second apron.
In addition, Kornet mentioned that Derrick White played a role in his decision to join the Spurs. White was drafted by the Spurs in 2017 and spent the first four and a half seasons in San Antonio before being traded to Boston. Over the years, White has fondly recalled his time with the Spurs playing under head coach Gregg Popovich.
That helped assure Kornet — who is from Texas — that he was making the right decision.
“There’s quite a few people in Boston who had been in San Antonio before. Derrick had nothing but positive things to say,” Kornet said.
“Derrick, obviously, it was such a great place for him. He’s kind of come to his own in Boston. I got called up to Boston, and he got traded there at the same time, so I feel like it was interesting to see him grow into a new place after a place that he really cherished for a lot of years. Just grateful to be able to be a part of this.”
Kornet joins a young Spurs team with ambitious expectations
This current iteration of the Spurs has yet to make the playoffs, but expectations are high this season. San Antonio will bring back a roster headlined by the last two rookies of the year — Victor Wembenyama and Stephon Castle — as well as All-Star point guard De’Aaron Fox and No. 2 overall pick Dylan Harper.
Playing for such a young group will be a big change for Kornet, who has spent most of his career on a more veteran Boston team.
That’s something he acknowledged in his introductory press conference.
“I’ve been playing the last couple of years with a very experienced group, and honestly, I just hope to be able to serve in whatever way I can,” Kornet said. “I don’t think there’s any — you’re walking in and feeling like you’re teaching anybody. Really, you’re all together trying to figure it out. Having the experience that I had, and us having won a championship in Boston, and having a lot of playoff experience, you just start growing a better understanding of how your team needs to work — the maturity that is sort of required, how quickly you can recognize and acknowledge what your strengths are and how to cover up your weaknesses. I hope to facilitate that process for us on the court.”
The Celtics lost most of their big man rotation this offseason
In addition to Kornet heading to San Antonio, Kristaps Porzingis was traded to the Atlanta Hawks after two years with Boston. Al Horford has yet to make an official free agency decision but is reportedly leaning toward signing with the Golden State Warriors.
In their place, the Celtics signed Luka Garza to a two-year, $5.5 million contract, and currently have Neemias Queta and Xavier Tillman both under contract. In addition, they drafted Kentucky center Amari Williams with the 46th pick in the draft. That big man rotation will undoubtedly be a step back from last years’, though it’s certainly possible that more moves are coming.