When Kristaps Porzingis injured his foot in the NBA Finals last year, he knew surgery would be required. Despite that, he still came back and played in Game 5. He wanted to be a part of history. Boston got the job done, and in the summer, Porzingis had surgery, from which he is still recovering.
Porzingis delivered multiple updates throughout the offseason via his Instagram, posting pictures of working out in Latvia with assistant coach DJ MacLeay and others. At Media Day, he said that he was feeling good and on track for the return he and the Celtics were hoping for.
And on Tuesday, Shams Charania of ESPN provided some even better news.
Kristaps Porzingis could be back in December (or sooner)
During an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, Charania said that the Celtics are targeting a December return date for Porzingis and that it could be even earlier than that.
“The Celtics are targeting December, from that I’m told, for Kristaps Porzingis and his return,” Charania said. “And there was video I was seeing last night of him warming up before the game. He has not progressed to contact yet, but BC, if you’re watching this video, you’re probably licking your chops, you’re getting ready for Kristaps Porzingis to be back in the lineup. He looks really, really good.”
December was the reported date that Porzingis was always projected to return, but Charania also expanded on his reporting.
He said that if the Celtics didn’t have the best starting five in the NBA, they may be a bit more rushed to bring Porzingis back. But since they are in such a good spot, they want to be very patient.
Charania even noted that his return could come sooner than December (but the team is focused on that month).
“I think, if this wasn’t a Celtics team that has the best starting lineup, to me, in the NBA, they’ve got the number one starting five in the league, for sure. If they didn’t have the luxury of being where they are at now, maybe you’re a little bit more pressed to bring KP back,” Charania said. “But they have the luxury of having to be patient. They can wait.
“They don’t necessarily need to rush him back at all. If it ends up taking until January, it takes until January. But right now, they’re targeting December. It could even be earlier, but right now, they’re really focused on that month.