Will Kristaps Porzingis play in game 1 of the NBA Finals against the Mavericks?

The Celtics big man is an integral piece of the puzzle which is why the team continues to sweat on his status ahead of the NBA Finals, but there is good news.

Paul RudderEnglish_ASUpdate: Jun 5th, 2024 00:48 EDT0

MEGAN BRIGGSAFP

While it remains to be seen whether Boston Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis will be able to return from injury in time for the NBA Finals which start this week, the signs do at present point to the idea that he could in fact be back in the lineup to face the Dallas Mavericks.

Will Kristaps Porzingis return for the NBA Finals?

As they prepare for Game 1 of the NBA Finals, the Boston Celtics may be in line for a boost with reports suggesting that Porzingis could return to the team sooner rather than later. The 7-foot center has not played since straining his left calf during Game 4 of the Celtics first-round playoff series against the Miami Heat back on April 29th. Of course, one might argue that following an eventual 4-1 victory over the Heat, a dismantling of the Cleveland Cavaliers in the second round, and a 4-0 sweep of the highly-touted Indiana Pacers in the conference finals, it may be that the Celtics don’t need him.

Boston’s Kristaps Porzingis (calf) has completed multiple scrimmages in recent days and is expected to return to action for Game 1 of the NBA Finals vs. Dallas on Thursday night barring setback, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium. Porzingis has been sidelined since April 29. pic.twitter.com/3kdyvJQyqt

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 4, 2024

On the other hand, head coach Joe Mazzulla who declined to give any definitive timeline for Porzingis’ return, was quick to point out the critical importance of the Latvian to the Celtics’ cause. “When KP is at his best, he’s been tremendous for us and we expect that from him and we know he’ll give that to us,” Mazzulla said. As for the man himself, the last time we heard from Porzingis was back on May 4th when he gave some insight into the nature of his injury. “It’s something, it’s not nothing,” he said before admitting that it would indeed take “a little bit of time” to recover fully. What we’ve seen since then was an update that he provided via social media where he stated “I’ll be back in the lineup very soon. See you in the finals.”

So, what do we know about Kristaps Porzingis’ rehab process?

For the moment, the signs appear to be positive, during a session that was open to the media last Friday, Porzingis was seen participating in an extended 3-point shooting drill with assistant coaches and trainers, albeit with a compression sleeve on his left leg. On Saturday, he also participated in a relaxed 5-on-5 game with teammates, something that Mazzulla later spoke to, explaining that Porzingis “did everything the team did.”

With that as context, it just may be that the Celtics are about to see the return of not only an important player in the paint but one who actually played for the Mavericks before (2019-22). Incidentally, the Mavericks’ Kyrie Irving is another player who creates a similar narrative in the series, having previously played for the Celtics, a fact that he spoke to this week as well.

How important is Kristaps Porzingis for the Celtics?

With an average of 20.1 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 1.9 blocks during the regular season across 57 games, it’s clear that Porzingis has not only been a threat when healthy but on both ends of the floor to boot. Prior to his injury during the Heat series, he was averaging 14.0 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.5 blocks. While it’s true that the Celtics amassed an impressive 21-4 record over the cumulative 25-game span that he missed due to other niggling injuries, the reality is the big man has been an important cog in Boston’s wheel.

Indeed, that was something that Celtics guard Derrick White spoke to directly where defensive play is concerned. White along with teammate Jrue Holiday is of course an inclusion on the NBA All-Defensive third team. “He does a great job of just making things difficult,” White said. “It’s always nice to know that he’s back there, whether he blocks or he doesn’t block. He makes them think about it. That’s been really great having him on our side, just doing the things he did day in and day out. Once he comes back and gets in the flow I think it’s going to be nice.”

The Celtics are adding THIS back for The Finals. It’s not being talked about enough that the Celtics have been without Kristaps Porzingis virtually all playoffs. pic.twitter.com/2MfqfRPIW5

— Celtics Junkies (@Celtics_Junkies) June 4, 2024