Despite focusing on his return Monday night, Kristaps Porzingis still isn’t ready to take the court.
The Boston Celtics announced Sunday afternoon that Porzingis will not play in Game 4 of their Eastern Conference finals against the Indiana Pacers on Monday due to his ongoing calf injury.
Porzingis hasn’t played since their opening-round series against the Miami Heat, when he first went down with a bothersome non-contact calf injury. He missed all of their second-round series against the Cleveland Cavaliers due to his calf strain, and was expected to miss the first few games of the conference finals as well.
The team hoped Porzingis could make his return in Monday’s game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. He has “accelerated his progress on the field” in recent days to make his return. It is unclear if there is a setback in his recovery, or if Porzingis is simply not ready to play yet.
Porzingis averaged 20.1 points and 7.2 rebounds with the Celtics this season, his first with the team. He has also shot a career-high 51.6% from the field.
With Porzingis out on Monday night, his next opportunity is Wednesday night in Game 5 in Boston. However, the Celtics have a 3-0 lead in the series and could close it out on Monday. Not only would that send the Celtics to their second NBA Finals in the past three years, but it would give Porzingis even more time to recover. Game 1 of the finals is scheduled for June 6.
Even though they made it through the postseason largely unscathed without him, Porzingis would undoubtedly give the Celtics a major boost in their quest for what would be their first NBA title in more than 15 years — especially if he ends up getting a few. extra days in his recovery.
Although Porzingis is out for the Celtics, Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton still has a chance to play in Monday’s crucial Game 4.
The Pacers listed Haliburton as questionable as of Sunday afternoon due to his left hamstring injury, which kept him out of Saturday’s 114-111 loss to the Celtics. Haliburton went down for the first time in Game 2 of the series and was also considered doubtful for Game 3 before being ruled out.
Haliburton averaged a career-high 20.1 points and 10.9 assists this season while leading the Pacers to the conference finals for the first time since 2014.
Haliburton has been dealing with numerous injuries lately, including his hamstring injury – which dates back to January, when he slipped while driving to the basket against the Celtics. He also recovered from a pectoral injury suffered in a collision with Jaylen Brown earlier in the conference finals.
Even though Haliburton was out, the Pacers still stuck with the Celtics on Saturday night. Andrew Nembhard led the way with 32 points and nine assists, and both Myles Turner and Pascal Siakam added 22 points in the loss for Indianapolis.
But once again, the Celtics found a way to shut them down after a near triple-double from Jayson Tatum. All five of the Celtics’ starters also hit double figures in the win, which came after their dominant 126-110 victory in Game 2.
