INDIANAPOLIS — As Kristaps Porzingis headed to the Celtics locker room fresh off their Game 4 win over the Pacers, the talented big man beamed with happiness. He high-fived fans who cheered him into the tunnel as the Celtics clinched their second NBA Finals berth in the past three seasons.
While Porzingis hasn’t been able to suit up for the majority of the playoffs, the Celtics did create their own perfect scenario for the big man. Porzingis continues to rehab his strained right soleus that has kept him out since he hurt the calf back on April 29. But after they swept the Pacers in the East Finals, the C’s will get a well-deserved, lengthy break.
Game 1 of the series is set for June 6 in Boston against either the Mavericks or the Timberwolves. Dallas currently leads that series 3-0, so it’s looking like a rematch with Kyrie Irving. Porzingis will also see his old team in the Mavs for extra juice in that potential series. Fortunately, if he is able to play in Game 1, it will have been 38 days since he hurt his calf against the Heat.
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In the meantime, Porzingis can continue his rehab to make sure he’s as close to 100% healthy as possible. Realistically, he won’t be at full game speed considering that’s difficult to replicate. But at the very least, Porzingis can make sure he’s not rushing back considering the long layoff.
Porzingis isn’t the lone factor when it comes to getting the Celtics back up to full strength. The C’s picked up a small injury in Luke Kornet, who missed Game 3 due to a sprained left wrist. He was available for Game 4, though C’s coach Joe Mazzulla rolled with Xavier Tillman instead for minutes. Jrue Holiday was also dealing with a non-COVID illness, so he can kick that sickness during the long layoff.
Elsewhere, Al Horford will also get a 10-day break as he’s been the guy the Celtics have leaned on with Porzingis out. Horford averaged 35.0 minutes over the four-game East Finals, so getting his legs back under him will be important. All of these rest advantages are a stark difference to two years ago, when the C’s had to go through a gauntlet to get to the Finals, where they eventually ran out of gas. So while the break is certainly a benefit for Porzingis, it also applies to the rest of the team, as well.
“It was a lot for our group,” Horford said of two seasons ago. “It was very overwhelming, and I feel like we were trying to catch on the whole time there. And now we’ve put ourselves in position in the regular season to have homecourt advantage, to be in this position, and with this series we’re taking advantage of the opportunities and playing the right way. I feel like we’re more mature and we’re in a better place.”
