Hearing the word “injury” in any sentence involving Boston Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis is cause for concern.
The 2018 All-Star has been plagued by various injuries throughout his eight-year career, and he was most recently diagnosed with plantar fasciitis. The Latvian big man was just dealt to the C's earlier this summer, so many began to worry when Porzingis was already ruled out for the 2023 FIBA World Cup.
But, on Tuesday, Celtics President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens delivered some good news about Porzingis' status, per WEEI-FM.
“Kristaps seems to be in a really good place,” he said. “He’s focused on what matters. He’s coming here to do his part to help us win.”
Brad Stevens even sounded optimistic about his newest center's rehabilitation process, as he added that Kristaps Porzingis should be ready for Day 1 of training camp on Tuesday, October 3rd.
Whether or not he's actually good to go then remains to be seen, but at least it sounds like Porzingis is healthier than usual.
This past season, the 28-year-old actually had one of the most complete seasons of his career. He played (and started) in 65 games for the Washington Wizards while averaging a career-high 23.2 points per game. Before that, Porzingis' last season in which he played in more than 60 games was all the way back in 2016 with the New York Knicks.
It's no secret that the “Unicorn” has had the injury bug and that the Celtics were taking a bit of risk by making a move for him. Hopefully, Porzingis can stay on the floor for as long as possible and be able to play meaningful games deep into the 2023-24 season.
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