Former Celtic center Luke Kornet had a front-row seat to witness his former teammates beat the Toronto Raptors in a 125-117 win at TD Garden Friday night.
Kornet is back in Boston with his new team; the San Antonio Spurs to face his old team for first time since leaving in free agency this past summer. The 29-year-old big man signed a much deserved four-year, $41 million deal with the Spurs after spending the previous four season with the Celtics -- including helping winning the franchise's 18th championship in 2024.
While Brad Stevens made it transparent that he wanted Kornet, who was an unrestricted free agent, back for the upcoming season -- ultimately it came down to the Spurs and the Celtics before the fan-favorite made his decision to take his talents to Texas.
"It was ultimately between San Antonio and Boston," Kornet told reporters Saturday about his decision. "I had a lot of conversations with my wife, said a lot of prayers and had conversations about where we are in life.
"It was very, very difficult to leave and we had a lot of relationships [here]. We were in a different part of life and kind of being open to wherever God kind of willed us and see where it took us. You sort of accept it and take that step forward and figure it out from there."
Kornet was back at the Garden on his off day being greeted by Jayson Tatum via a bear hug and was also seen hugging Wyc Grousbeck among others courtside during the Celtics victory over the Raptors.
Jayson Tatum went over and gave Luke Kornet a hug during the timeout. pic.twitter.com/QoQUBnbXgQ
— Justin Turpin (@JustinmTurpin) January 10, 2026
Several ex-teammates spoke fondly about Kornet on Friday ahead of the Celtics matchup against the Spurs, including current starting center; Neemias Queta.
"Hilarious teammate. Great guy, great person to be around," Questa said in his post shootaround comments. "The main memory I get from him is just how funny it was. Everyday, how much he would come out here and lift everybody's spirits up. Hilarious guy."
Queta has taken full advantage of his new role putting up a career-high 10.0 points and 8.1 rebounds per contest so far, as a big reason the Celtics have the Eastern Conference's second best record at 24-13. Of course another major factor has been the MVP-level play of Jaylen Brown, who's averaging a career-best 29.6 points per game to go along with 6.4 rebounds and 5.0 assists.
"It's been cool to see. They play fast, free and aggressive," Kornet said on the C's play and success. "Obviously, Jaylen's been incredible, it's been cool to see everybody take that next step for themselves and for the team."
Kornet's departure has seemed to have worked out well for both the Celtics and Spurs so far, as the eight-year veteran is posting career highs across the board in San Antonio this season, averaging 8.4 points, 6.7 rebounds and 2.1 assists while starting in 21 of his 29 games played. He's been valuable as All-Star center Victor Wembanyama's insurance policy, with the Spurs getting out to an impressive 26-11 start and second place out in the Western Conference.
The Celtics host Kornet and the Spurs Saturday at TD Garden, on the second night of a back-to-back. NBC Sports Boston has the tip-off at 8:00 pm ET.
Joel Pavón
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