The Boston Celtics were without starting center Kristaps Porzinigs for about five weeks this postseason. In Round 1 against the Miami Heat, he suffered a right calf strain that kept him sidelined through the next two rounds.
He was able to get in the lineup for Game 1 of the NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks. Kristaps Porzingis made an immediate impact, lighting Dallas up offensively while providing some stellar intimidation at the rim.
It was more of the same in Game 2, but in the fourth quarter on Sunday, Kristaps Porzinigs looked to tweak the same leg. With 4:40 remaining in the game, he subbed out of the game in favor of Al Horford.
“Not difficult at all,” Porzingis said, when asked if it was tough for him to continue playing. “I’ll die out there if we need, so I just kept going.
“But obviously I was a little bit limited, so the smart thing was to get Al [Horford] back in there and close out the game.”
While on the bench for the end of the game, the Boston Celtics’ new super sixth man could be seen working things out with some band exercises. When he went back to the locker room, there was no noticeable limp, which is certainly an encouraging sign.
“I feel good,” said Porzingis, who sat in a chair as he did his postgame media session in the locker room. “Obviously something happened a little bit, but I have a couple days [to get ready] again, and believe me, we’ll do everything we can to be back and moving.”
With two days off until Game 3, Kristaps Porzingis will have plenty of time to rehab and get his leg as close to 100 percent healthy as possible. His presence on the court against the Dallas Mavericks has been integral to the Boston Celtics grabbing a 2-0 lead out of the gate.
Should Kristaps Porzinigs be in the lineup on Wednesday, it will be the first time he has played in Dallas since they traded him to the Washington Wizards in 2022. A raucous crowd can be expected as they will attempt to will their team to a victory to help climb back into the series.
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