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Kristaps Porzingis is eager to return to the Boston Celtics' lineup for the next season. However, it doesn't seem like the Celtics center will be available for his team when the next season begins. The NBA champion told ESPN that his timeline for return is December.
Last season, Porzingis dealt with injuries both in the regular season and playoffs. He missed 25 regular-season games. In the first round of the playoffs, he suffered a unique leg injury. According to the Celtics, the injury was "a torn medial retinaculum allowing dislocation of the posterior tibialis tendon in his left leg."
In a conversation with ESPN, Kristaps Porzingis said that although his return is expected in December, he would want to make his return earlier than that.
"The expectation is sometime in December," Porzingis said. "But I'm feeling really good and I'm working towards hopefully playing earlier than that."
The Celtics star made his return in the NBA Finals but suffered the same injury in Game 2. Porzingis made his return in Game 5 to close out the series.
How did Kristaps Porzingis perform last season?
Kristaps Porzingis was a crucial piece for the success of the Boston Celtics last season. After being traded from the Washington Wizards, the Latvian star was in a perfect position to win a title and he made the most of the situation.
Porzingis played 57 regular-season games, where he averaged 20.1 points on 51.6% shooting from the field and 37.5% from the 3-point line. He was also impactful on the defensive end, averaging 0.7 steals and 1.9 blocks per game. On the loaded Celtics team, Porzingis was the perfect addition that contributed on both ends of the floor.
However, the NBA big man suffered a setback in the first round of the playoffs against the Miami Heat when he went down with a leg injury. Following his injury, Kristaps Porzingis played only seven of the 19 Celtics postseason games.
In those seven games, Porzingis averaged 12.3 points as he shot 46.7% from the field and 34.5% from the 3-point line. He also averaged 4.4 rebounds, 0.7 steals and 1.6 blocks per game. Of those seven games, he played three in the NBA Finals against his former team: the Dallas Mavericks.
In Game 1 of the NBA Finals, Kristaps Porzingis came out strong as he scored 20 points in just 21 minutes and helped take the game away from the Mavs. In three games in finals, he averaged 12.3 points and 1.7 blocks per game.
