The Boston Celtics will once again be without star big man Kristaps Porzingis for Game 2 of their Eastern Conference Finals series against the Indiana Pacers as he continues to try and work his way back from a calf injury, the team announced Wednesday afternoon. Porzingis, who missed Game 1 of the series on Tuesday night, has not played since April 29 in the first round of the playoffs against the Miami Heat.

The good news surrounding Porzingis and the Celtics is that it does appear likely that he will be able to return at some point in this series against Indiana. When that moment will occur remains unknown.

Recently, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Porzingis could return as soon as Game 4 in Indiana on Monday, but the team will not be rushing him back onto the floor. If Porzingis was to return to the floor for the fourth game of this series, it would essentially be right at the one-month mark since he first suffered his right soleus strain.

Without Porzingis on the court in the postseason, the Celtics have won six of their last seven games, only dropping Game 2 of their Eastern Conference Semifinals series against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

While it took an extra overtime period, the Celtics were able to handle the Pacers in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals on Tuesday, with Porzingis watching from the bench. Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Jrue Holiday combined for 90 points in this contest, but it was a heroic three-pointer from Brown with six seconds remaining in the fourth quarter that tied things up at 117 and forced an extra five minutes of play.

Although they certainly have enough talent to make the NBA Finals, the Celtics know they are going to need Porzingis healthy and on the floor if they are to have any chance of winning their first title since 2008. Porzingis has proven to be the X-factor for this team all season, and he is the glue to both their offense and defense.

In the regular season, Porzingis averaged 20.1 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 1.9 blocks per game while shooting 51.6 percent from the floor and 37.5 percent from three-point range. His ability to play out on the perimeter offensively makes the Celtics' historic offense as great as it can be.

The Pacers, who came up just short of taking an early 1-0 series lead on the Celtics, will look to take advantage of Porzingis' absence in Game 2 on Thursday night in Boston.