The Boston Celtics are in the NBA Finals once again, but that's not enough. Even center Kristaps Porzingis, who's never been to the Finals, understands this.
During a media session on Tuesday afternoon, Porzingis gave his thoughts about the excitement of the Finals and what Boston's next steps are, via Celtics in-house writer Taylor Snow.
“It's incredible, it's incredible. Just the energy, everybody is buzzing,” Porzingis said. “The team, the organization—we’re going into this series with full confidence, knowing that no steps were skipped. The goal is to finish the job.”
Last season, the C's looked eager to simply fast-forward to the Finals. Due to that haste, they stumbled early and often, engaging in lengthier series with the inferior Atlanta Hawks and the banged-up Philadelphia 76ers. The Celtics had already played 13 playoff games by the time they reached the Eastern Conference Finals.
This season, the Celtics have only been in 12 postseason games because they've handled business and “skipped no steps,” as Porzingis said. They eliminated the Miami Heat in five games, disposed of the Cleveland Cavaliers in five games, and swept the Indiana Pacers in four games en route to their second Finals appearance in the last three seasons.
Things are going to be tougher in the finals against the Dallas Mavericks, yet Porzingis is confident in his team.
Will Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis play in Game 1 of the 2024 NBA Finals?
Porzingis hasn't played since April 29th, which was Game 4 of the first round versus the Heat. The Latvian big man suffered a soleus strain and hasn't seen the court since.
That could change when Game 1 of the Finals tips off on Thursday, June 6. Porzingis has been working towards returning for over a month now, and he received a major injury update on Tuesday morning, per NBA insider Shams Charania.
“Boston’s Kristaps Porzingis (calf) has completed multiple scrimmages in recent days and is expected to return to action for Game 1 of the NBA Finals vs. Dallas on Thursday night barring setback,” Charania posted on X.
This is welcome news for the C's, as they've missed Porzingis' rim protection on defense and post-up ability on offense. Although they didn't have a dire need for him in the last two rounds, the 7-foot-2 big would've made life a lot simpler.
Boston's depth allowed it to survive without Porzingis. Celtics stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown scored and rebounded more in his absence and backup center Al Horford had a few huge games while he was in the starting five.
How Porzingis will adapt to the rapid pace of the Finals remains to be seen. A soleus injury is no joke, and Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo proved that. The “Greek Freak” is Milwaukee's go-to guy, yet he didn't play a single minute in the playoffs after injuring his calf on April 9th during a regular season game against the Celtics.
While all signs seem to be pointing to Porzingis playing in Game 1 of the Finals, Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla is still being cautious, per Bobby Krivitsky of SI.com.
“[Porzingis] is working on [playing in Game 1]. Thought he's done a great job working to that point,” Mazzulla stated during a Tuesday afternoon press conference. “He's going through practices. Still have to see how he responds each day.”
Ironically, Porzingis played in over 130 games for the Mavericks. He was even teammates with Dallas star Luka Doncic, another European sensation with ties to Spanish basketball.
Then, when Porzingis was moved to the Wizards, he teamed up with young center Daniel Gafford, who's now with Dallas after getting dealt right at this season's trade deadline. Boston's star big is very familiar with the Mavs and perhaps his past experiences will come in handy for the Finals.
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