Kristaps Porzingis is a big part of the Celtics plans for next season after the team gave him a two-year extension last month. However, when exactly the 7-foot-3 big man would be able to suit up for Boston remained a question mark after the former Wizard was diagnosed with plantar fasciitis in his foot earlier this month, forcing him to sit out the FIBA World Cup for his home country of Latvia.
In an appearance on Jones and Mego as part of the NESN/WEEI Jimmy Fund telethon on Tuesday, Brad Stevens gave a promising update on Porzingis’ condition and his outlook for the upcoming season.
“I’m not concerned about that,” Stevens said of the foot injury. “He’s at the FIBA Tournament with the team so he’s doing his rehab there. We were with him in the 10 days, our training staff was with him (before the tournament) as he was diagnosed with plantar fasciitis. He went through all the progressions and he really tried to ramp up and play. He just determined he didn’t want to deal with lingering effects down the road.
$200 INSTANT BONUS
DRAFTKINGS MASS
BET $5, GET $200 BONUS BET
FANDUEL MASS
BET $50, GET $250 BONUS
CAESARS MASS
$1,000 FIRST-BET BONUS
BETMGM MASS
“This is something that we should be able to navigate and manage in the next few weeks and be ready for training camp. We’re planning on having him for Day 1 of training camp. He really wanted to try the ramp-up because it really mattered to be there (at the World Cup).”
The Celtics were not aware of the foot injury when they dealt away Marcus Smart, Danilo Gallinari and Mike Muscala as part of the three-team deal to acquire Porzingis in June. However, Stevens was confident that the foot injury would not be a long-term issue for the 2024-25 season.
“You never know how it all ends up,” Stevens admitted. “From a sports science perspective and physical therapists, they are as good as I’ve been around about navigating. and managing that if we do this now, we’ll be in good shape. If you manage it, if you treat it correctly and you ramp back up at the right rate, it has a lot less chance of being a lingering issue. This isn’t what I would call a significant injury that you are concerned about big picture.”
Stevens was also encouraged by the fact that Porzingis was focused on being in his best condition for the upcoming season in Boston as he manages the injury.
“Those guys that represent their countries, they really enjoy that opportunity,” Stevens said of playing in the World Cup. “He was heartbroken not to do it but he put the opportunity here and took away any chance of having lingering effects by addressing it now. It shouldn’t be a big deal.”
The Celtics open up training camp in Boston on October 3rd.
- Highly anticipated sportsbooks like BetMGM Massachusetts, along with Caesars Sportsbook Massachusetts have been live since Spring of 2023. New players can use promo codes like the FanDuel Massachusetts promo code and the DraftKings Massachusetts promo.
