The first NBA champion from Portugal, 26-year-old Neemias Queta is leading his country’s surge while shattering career-highs as a cornerstone for the Boston Celtics
By Johnny Askounis/ [email protected]
Boston Celtics starting center Neemias Queta reflected on his individual evolution and its symbiotic relationship with the rising profile of basketball in his home country, Portugal. Following his tenth double-double of the 2025-26 Regular Season, a key factor in Boston’s victory over the Phoenix Suns, the 26-year-old Lisbon native relayed his journey.
“I think that’s always like something surreal for me, being from Portugal and living in the NBA world, and just being able to go out here and compete at the highest level every night,” mentioned the first-ever Portuguese player to play, score, start, and win an NBA championship.
“The work and the amount of time I’ve been out here, like the more I’m playing too, I feel like I’m just getting so much more love over there, from back home,” he continued during a postgame interview following the win in Mortgage Matchup Center on Tuesday.
The Lisbon native went from representing Portugal in minor international tournaments across both junior and senior levels to making his way to last summer’s EuroBasket 2025.
“It’s a growing thing,” he linked individual progress to his country’s first EuroBasket appearance since 2011. “We’re getting so much better as a country in the sport. So, I feel like it’s only fitting that I keep on getting better, too. So, I just want to be out here competing my best and live with the results.”
The team coached by Joe Mazzulla, now sitting at 38-19, immediately pivots to a formidable back-to-back challenge against the Denver Nuggets at Ball Arena to complete a four-game road trip on Wednesday.
Queta acknowledged the difficulty of the task ahead, specifically his upcoming assignment opposite Serbian superstar Nikola Jokic. “Best player in the league, arguably,” he said. “It’s not going to be an easy night, but I just want to be out here competing my best.”
Over 54 appearances this season, including 53 starts, the Portuguese center has averaged 9.8 points, 8.4 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.3 blocks, and 0.9 steals per game, all career-highs.
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