INDIANAPOLIS — Kristaps Porzingis was beaming with joy as he headed into the Celtics locker room following their Game 4 win over the Pacers, high-fiving cheering fans as he entered the tunnel as the Celtics clinched their second NBA Finals berth in the past three seasons.
Porzingis missed most of the playoffs, but the Celtics had the perfect scenario for the big man. He's been rehabbing a right soleus strain since injuring his calf on April 29, and he's been sidelined since. But after the Celtics' sweep of the Pacers in the Eastern Finals, he'll be getting a well-deserved break.
Game 1 of the series is scheduled to take place on June 6 in Boston against either the Mavericks or Timberwolves. Dallas currently leads the series 3-0, so it looks like a rematch with Kyrie Irving. Porzingis will also be facing his former team in an attempt to gain some momentum in the series. Fortunately, if he plays in Game 1, it will be 38 days since he strained his calf against the Heat.
In the meantime, Porzingis can continue his rehab and get as close to 100% healthy as possible. Realistically, he probably won't be able to play at full speed in games given how difficult it would be to replicate that, but at least Porzingis can factor in a long break and not rush his return.
Porzingis won't be the only factor in getting the Celtics back to full strength. The Celtics were hit with a minor injury in Luke Kornet, who missed Game 3 with a sprained left wrist. Kornet was available for Game 4, but Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla used Xavier Tillman for minutes instead. Jrue Holiday was also battling a non-COVID illness and will be able to battle that during his extended absence.
Meanwhile, Al Horford, who the Celtics have been relying on while Porzingis is out, will also get 10 days of rest. Horford averaged 35 minutes over the four games of the Eastern Finals, so it will be important for him to get back into shape. The benefits of this kind of rest are very different from two years ago, when the Celtics overcame a tough test to get to the Finals and ultimately ran out of gas. So while rest is certainly an advantage for Porzingis, it also applies to the rest of the team.
“It was tough for our team,” Horford said of two seasons ago, “and I feel like we were so overwhelmed and we were playing catch-up the whole time. And now we're in position to have home-court advantage in the regular season and we're taking advantage of our opportunities in this series and playing the right way. I feel like we're more mature and in better shape.”
