Kristaps Porzingis provides a health update after tweaking his leg and leaving Game 2
BOSTON -- The Boston Celtics are two wins away from an NBA championship, but the injury status of one of their best players once again is a storyline.
Big man Kristaps Porzingis played just 23 minutes in Game 2 of the 2024 NBA Finals at TD Garden -- a 105-98 Celtics win over the Dallas Mavericks -- and appeared to land awkwardly on multiple occasions in the second half.
Porzingis looked a bit hobbled after attempting to contest an alley-oop to Mavs big man Daniel Gafford late in the third quarter, then got tangled up with Dallas wing P.J. Washington under the basket with about 6:20 remaining in the fourth quarter.
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It's unclear which leg Porzingis injured, but the Celtics' training staff checked on him several times in the second half, and he briefly went to the locker room with a trainer as well, according to Sports Illustrated's Chris Mannix.
Game 2 was just Porzingis' second game back from a month-plus hiatus after he suffered a strained right calf on April 29 against the Miami Heat. While his status obviously is worth monitoring, the 7-foot-2 big man downplayed his injury after the game.
"I'm feeling good," Porzingis told reporters. "Yeah, I don't think it's anything serious, but we'll look at it tomorrow and go from there. But all good."
Porzingis played coy on the specifics of his injury -- "I don't even know what it is, to be honest," he said -- but it did force him to exit a close NBA Finals game with 4:40 remaining in the fourth quarter in favor of Al Horford, which obviously raises concerns about his health going forward.
When asked about his status for Game 3 in Dallas on Wednesday, however, Porzingis suggested he'll do whatever it takes to be on the floor.
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"Obviously something happened a little bit, but I have a couple of days again, and believe me, we will do everything we can to be back and moving well," Porzingis said. "... I'll die out there if we need. So I just kept going.
"But I would say I was a little bit limited, so the smart thing was to get Al back in there and close out the game."
Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla also provided a reassuring update on Porzingis, insisting he had "zero" concern about the big man's injury.
Porzingis was efficient in limited action Sunday, scoring 12 points on 4 of 7 shooting while grabbing four rebounds and blocking two shots. He now has 32 points and five blocks in about 43 minutes of action through Games 1 and 2 and has given the Celtics a notable boost on both ends while on the court.
Boston didn't need him much in Game 2 thanks to a strong effort from Jrue Holiday (a game-high 26 points), but even having Porzingis on the floor is a difference-maker for the Celtics, so his comments are an encouraging sign as the series shifts to Dallas on Wednesday.
Check out Porzingis' full press conference in the video below.