After a few weeks of excellent health, the Boston Celtics received their most significant injury report of the season on Sunday. According to Jared Weiss of The Athletic, center Kristaps Porzingis has a left calf strain and will be out for at least a week.
“Joe Mazzulla said Kristaps Porzingis is expected to have his calf reevaluated in about a week or so, but no specific timetable for a return at this point,” Weiss wrote on X.
The injury occurred during the third quarter of a Friday afternoon In-Season Tournament game against the Orlando Magic. The C’s lost by 17 points in the 113-96 loss without Porzingis and fellow summer acquisition Jrue Holiday.
Unfortunately, Porzingis has a history of injuries. Despite playing in 65 games with the Washington Wizards in 2022-23, he had played in less than 60 games in each of the previous four seasons.
The 2018 All-Star has missed only one game this season while averaging 18.9 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks per game. During his recuperation, he will at the very least miss a Sunday night game against the Atlanta Hawks, an In-Season Tournament game against the Chicago Bulls, and an Eastern Conference game against the Philadelphia 76ers.
While the Celtics would love to have their dynamic big man for all of those games, they should be glad the calf injury wasn’t worse. Boston’s starting lineup is stacked with skill, but its bench depth is questionable. Any catastrophic injury to the Green Team’s top six would be devastating.
Regardless of injuries, the C’s (12-4) will prepare for a seven-game homestand beginning with the Hawks.