Kristaps Porzingis hobbled off the court in Game 2 of the NBA Finals with what we later learned was a torn retinaculum and dislocated posterior tibialis tendon — essentially a tear of the tissue that stabilizes the tendons in the foot and allows them to move smoothly. Once the retinaculum is torn, the tendons can shift around and pain follows.
Porzingis got treatment on the foot and played through the pain in Game 5, being on the court when the Celtics clinched banner No. 18 for the franchise.
Now comes the word he had surgery to repair the injury and will miss the start of next season because of it.
#NEBHInjuryReport Kristaps Porzingis underwent successful surgery to repair a torn retinaculum and dislocated posterior tibialis tendon.
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) June 27, 2024
Porzingis is expected to return to play in 5-6 months. Further updates will be provided as necessary. https://t.co/iLoPG4s5IU
That timeline has Porzingis returning around the start of November at the earliest, although around Thanksgiving or a little later seems more likely.
Porzingis had a standout first season with the Celtics averaging 20.1 points and 7.2 rebounds a game while shooting 37.5% from 3 — his floor spacing and rim protection put them over the top as title contenders.
It will be interesting to see if this news impacts the Celtics offseason. Al Horford will slide into the starting lineup for the Celtics while Porzingis is out — as he did in the Finals and at points last season — but will the team find another big man at the veteran minimum who can help fill some of those minutes at least early in the season. (Boston used its No. 30 draft pick on a sharp-shooting wing, but there wasn’t going to be a big at this point in the draft who could step in as a rookie and be trusted with those kinds of minutes.)
