Porzingis needs leg surgery, 'few months' of recovery
Boston Celtics big man Kristaps Porzingis requires surgery on the injured leg that cost him part of the NBA Finals, and he'll need a "few months" to recover, he revealed to ESPN's Tom Bontemps.
Porzingis tore the medial retinaculum, which enabled a dislocated posterior tibialis tendon, in Game 2. He sat out Games 3 and 4 before returning for Game 5 to help the Celtics defeat the Dallas Mavericks and clinch their 18th NBA championship.
"The medical staff did everything they could, and I gave my all, and I was able to get out there," Porzingis told ESPN's Lisa Salters on the podium after Game 5.
Porzingis scored five points in 16 minutes of the postseason finale. He was a major contributor all season long for the Celtics, who acquired him in an offseason trade with the Washington Wizards.
The Latvian injured his calf in the first round of the playoffs, causing him to miss the second and third series. He sparked the Celtics in Game 1 of the Finals, coming off the bench to score 20 points in 21 minutes, but suffered the leg injury in Game 2 that Boston coined as "rare."
"Somehow, I got it going for this game," he told reporters. "A lot of it was for sure the adrenaline from playing at the (TD) Garden and playing in front of our fans and having that opportunity to close it out."
Porzingis, 28, is signed through the 2025-26 campaign.