Boston Celtics star Kristaps Porzingis set make season debut for champs following offseason foot surgery
Already 14-3, the defending-champion Boston Celtics are about to get even better with the imminent return of 7-foot-3 center Kristaps Porzingis.
‘Boston Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis plans to make his season debut tonight against the Los Angeles Clippers, sources tell ESPN,’ ESPN’s Shams Charania wrote on X. ‘Porzingis returns five months after undergoing foot surgery.’
Porzingis has been sidelined ever since Boston’s five-game NBA Finals win over the Dallas Mavericks back in June. Although he averaged just 12.3 points a game in that series, Porzingis still made his presence felt on defense, recording five blocks while holding Mavs centers Daniel Gafford and Derek Lively II to 8.0 and 5.6 points a game, respectively.
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Already 14-3, the defending-champion Boston Celtics are about to get even better with the imminent return of 7-foot-3 center Kristaps Porzingis following off-season foot surgery
Porzingis averaged 20.1 points, 7.2 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.9 blocks in 57 games (all starts) in his first season with Boston in 2023-24.
The 29-year-old has career averages of 19.7 points, 7.9 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.8 blocks in 459 games (458 starts) with the New York Knicks (2015-18), Mavericks (2019-22), Washington Wizards (2022-23) and Celtics.
Porzingis was an All-Star in 2017-18 with the Knicks, who drafted the Latvia native with the No. 4 overall pick in 2015.
Repeatedly derailed by injuries, he missed the entire 2018-19 season with a torn ACL and has played fewer than 60 games in five of his last six campaigns.
In Boston, where he’s developed a distinct camaraderie with Jaylen Brown, Porzingis managed to stay just healthy enough to win a title.
In his place, the Celtics have relied on veteran Al Horford, journeyman backup Luke Kornet, and Neemias Queta, a 7-foot- 25-year-old from Portugal.
