The Boston Celtics expect Kristaps Porzingis to miss the start of next season with the rare ankle injury that limited him in the NBA Finals.
President of basketball operations Brad Stevens made the revelation Wednesday on the The Ryen Russillo Podcast. Stevens discussed Porzingis’ status in the context of transitioning from this year’s NBA championship to early next season.
“We’re going to be different right out of the gate simply because — you know — we have guys like Kristaps after his surgery — we don’t know exactly when he’ll be back,” Stevens told Russillo. “He’ll probably miss at least the very start of the season.”
Stevens didn’t further elaborate on Porzingis’ status and recovery.
Porzingis suffered a torn retinaculum and dislocated posterior tibialis tendon in his left ankle in Game 2 against the Dallas Mavericks after helping lead Boston in Game 1 with 20 points, six rebounds and three blocks. Porzingis missed Games 3 and 4 and returned in a limited capacity to play in Boston’s Game 5 clincher at home.
Porzingis said after the series that he would require surgery for the injury. Stevens told reporters on Tuesday that Porzingis was in the process of consulting with doctors and that he was expected to undergo surgery “soon.”
Stevens declined then to speculate on a timeline before acknowledging Wednesday that Porzingis would likely miss the start of next season and maybe beyond.
It’s not clear if anything about Porizingis’ status had changed. Stevens didn’t provide any updates Wednesday on Porzingis’ surgery timeline.
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