It’s official. Kristaps Porzingis is out for Game 3 of the NBA Finals in Dallas.
In an interview yesterday with NBA TV’s Jared Greenberg, Porzingis said that if the Celtics medical staff gave him an opportunity to be out there, he’d play.
“I’m obviously doing everything I can to be out there. If I get, like I said, ‘completely no,’ it’s different. But if there’s a small percentage, then you can expect me to be out there,” Porzingis said.
Considering that, it’s unclear if he’ll be available on Friday night for Game 4. As previously reported, it’s a rare injury with seemingly a wide range of outcomes when it comes re-injury, recover, surgery, etc. All that we know now is that KP wanted to play, but the Celtics ultimately held him back.
In terms of bid man depth, head coach Joe Mazzulla could roll with either Luke Kornet, Xavier Tillman Sr., or play small with Oshae Brissett and/or Jayson Tatum at the 5.
Before tip-off, Mazzulla said that after watching Porzingis go through some testing today, he was ruled out — “the staff decided it wasn’t what’s best for him” — but will still be listed day-to-day and re-evaluated tomorrow.
Joe Mazzulla said the medical staff felt Kristaps Porzingis didn’t look right:
“It was out of his hands, it was the medical team’s [decision]. They watched him go through some testing and they said it didn’t feel right.” pic.twitter.com/kbaMYk1jE6
— Noa Dalzell (@NoaDalzellNBA) June 12, 2024
“I appreciate him, just his approach. Throughout the whole playoffs, he hasn’t missed any meetings. He’s always been out there and done everything he can to play,” Mazzulla said. “Sometimes, it’s just an unfortunate situation. There’s nothing that he can do, so definitely feel for him and appreciate where he’s at and I trust he’ll do everything he can to be ready for the next game.”
