DALLAS — Boston Celtics star Kristaps Porzinis suffered a torn tendon in his left leg, leaving his day-to-day condition and availability for Game 3 of the NBA Finals in doubt.
In announcing the injury, the Celtics said that Porzinis suffered a “torn medial retinaculum allowing a posterior tibial dislocation” in his left leg, which means a tendon near the ankle has been torn. Boston described the injury as “rare” and said Porzinis consulted with several specialists.
According to the National Library of Medicine, the “vast majority” of these cases are resolved surgically.
“It’s a serious injury,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzola said before the Celtics practiced in Dallas. “He’s doing anything and everything he can to be ready for tomorrow’s game. … Ultimately, our team and the medical team are not going to put him in any bad situation — so we made the decision to play it out of his control.
“I’m going to do everything I can to be there tomorrow,” said Porzinis, who averaged 12.5 points and 5.0 rebounds off the bench in the Finals.
“I’m (optimistic), of course, I have to be,” Porzinis said.
The team said the new injury is not related to the calf injury that sidelined Porzinis for 10 games earlier in the playoffs. Patients who do not have immediate access to the level of care enjoyed by the Celtics typically go undiagnosed for a long period of time when dealing with Porzinis’ injury, the National Library of Medicine said. These patients may think they have an ankle sprain or, according to the NLM, a benign muscle tumor around the ankle.
The Celtics lead the series 2-0, with Game 3 scheduled for 8:30 PM ET on Wednesday at the American Airlines Center in Dallas.
Meanwhile, Dallas star Luka Doncic declared his chest pain “good” enough before outlining the underlying problem behind the Mavericks’ 2-0 deficit in the NBA Finals.
Dončić scores a lot, scoring 31 points per game during both losses to the Celtics, the highest average on either side. He played Game 2 on Sunday — a 105-98 loss — with a chest contusion painful enough that he said after the game that it was already questionable to play. A league source said Dončić received a pain-killing injection before the second game and may need another injection before the third game.
On Tuesday, when Doncic was asked about his health, he said: “I feel good. “I don’t want to go into more detail, but I feel good.”
Dončić also said the main problem the Mavericks have in this series is that “we can’t really score.”
Dallas’ shooting numbers must improve to get back to the Finals. The Mavs are shooting .445 as a team, but their 3-point shooting (.245) and, worse, foul shooting (.651) have not been at championship level.
The Celtics have the highest-rated defense in the playoffs (107.6 points allowed per 100 possessions – most without Porziņģis on the court) and were the second-best defense during the regular season.
“I think we’re getting some great looks,” Doncic said. “Like I say, we have confidence in everyone’s ability to shoot the ball on our team. We just have to keep believing in it.”
(Photo: Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)
