Boston fans gave veteran center Nikola Vucevic a warm welcome during the Celtics' matchup against the Miami Heat on Friday night.

Vucevic saw his six-year stint with the Chicago Bulls come to an end this week. The Celtics made the move to acquire him ahead of the trade deadline, getting the experienced center in exchange for Anfernee Simons.

Vucevic will provide high-quality rebounding and a solid offensive game that will benefit the Celtics' attack for the remainder of the 2025-26 season. He made his debut midway through the first quarter, getting a positive reception from the attending fans in TD Garden.

How Nikola Vucevic, Celtics played 1st half against Heat

Boston Celtics guard Derrick White (9) defends against Miami Heat forward Andrew Wiggins (22) during the second half at Kaseya Center.
Rhona Wise-Imagn Images
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Nikola Vucevic and the Celtics find themselves in a big hole as they trail 59-38 at home against the Heat.

Miami jumped out a quick lead as Boston was ice-cold with its shooting. Even though the bench unit featuring Vucevic helped stop the bleeding, they were unable to cool off the Heat's hot shooting from the field throughout the first 24 minutes of regulation.

Perimeter shooting and ball movement are making huge impacts on the game so far. The Heat dominate in both categories after making seven 3-pointers and creating 15 assists. It has been the complete opposite for the Celtics as they only knocked down one triple and dished out seven assists.

Jaylen Brown is the only player who scored in double-digits for Boston so far. He leads the way with 17 points, four rebounds, one assist, and one block. Payton Pritchard and Baylor Scheierman came next with five points each, Derrick White had four points and three blocks, while Vucevic put up three points and five rebounds in his first half debut.

After their matchup against the Heat, the Celtics will prepare for their next contest. They remain at home to host the New York Knicks on Feb. 8 at 12:30 p.m. ET.