Kristaps Porzingis, Celtics reportedly targeting December return

BOSTON -- Kristaps Porzingis could be back on the court for the Boston Celtics in the very near future. The injured big man is reportedly on target for his December return, according to ESPN's Shams Charania.

The Celtics will continue to take a cautious approach as Porzingis recovers from offseason surgery for the rare leg injury that he suffered in Game 2 of the NBA Finals. So that may push his December return back into January, though Charania made it sound like Porzingis' recovery is going so well that a November return would be on the table -- if the Celtics had any reason to rush him back.

Celtics, Porzingis targeting December return

"The Celtics are targeting December from what I'm told for Kristaps Porzingis and his return," Charania said during a Tuesday appearance on The Pat McAfee Show. "And there was video I was seeing last night of him warming up before the game."

Charania noted that Porzingis isn't taking contact yet, but said that the big man "looks really, really good." He added that the Celtics are able to take an overly cautious approach with Porzingis because of their stacked lineup.

"If the [Celtics] didn't have the luxury of being where they're at now, maybe you're more pressed to bring KP back. But they have the luxury of being able to be patient. They can wait. They don't necessarily need to rush him back at all," said Charania. "If it ends up taking until January, it takes until January. But right now they're targeting December. It could even be earlier, but right now they're really focused on that month."

Contact is the next step for Porzingis and Charania said that the Celtics have a program for him that essentially measure parts of his body to make sure his legs, knees, calves, etc. are recovering properly following his unique offseason surgery.

"Once his muscle groups are all balanced, he'll be cleared for return," said Charania. "But the Celtics will be patient and make sure he's 100 percent healthy."

Kristaps Porzingis' rare injury

Porzingis was hurt in Game 2 of the NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks. The Celtics announced that he had "suffered a torn medial retinaculum allowing dislocation of posterior tibialis tendon" in his left leg, which made him "day to day" for the rest of the Finals. The team's release called it a "rare injury," and Porzingis went on to miss Games 3 and 4 in Dallas. 

But he was able to gut out 16 minutes in Boston's title-clinching Game 5 victory, and received a huge ovation when he took the floor at TD Garden. Porzingis scored five points and pulled down a rebound as the Celtics clinched the championship with a 106-88 victory.

Porzingis underwent surgery a few days after the team's victory parade through Boston, and was given a 5-6 month timetable for his return. He resumed on-court activities in August, and Celtics president of basketball ops. Brad Stevens voiced some surprise over the big man's recovery back on media day.

"I don't know that we're interested in putting a timeline on him because the injury is unique. But as far as how he feels and the progress that he's made, I'd say we're very, very pleased with where he is," said Stevens. "Maybe a little surprised."

Celtics without Porzingis

Last season, the Celtics were 21-4 in the regular season and 10-2 in the playoffs without Porzingis in the lineup. They're off to a 4-0 start to the 2024-25 season heading into Wednesday night's game against the Pacers in Indiana.

Boston hasn't missed a beat to start the new season, touting a 126.1 offensive rating and a plus-14.9 net rating. Veteran Al Horford has been starting in Porzingis' place, but has only averaged 26.3 minutes over the first four games thanks the C's incredible depth.

Now imagine what the Celtics will look like when Porzingis gets back into the mix. It's still at least a month away, but Porzingis' return is coming soon.

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