Stevens: Porzingis may miss start of next season

Boston Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis will likely miss “the very start” of the 2024-25 season following surgery this summer on his left leg, president of basketball operations Brad Stevens said on “The Ryen Russillo Podcast.”

Porzingis suffered a torn retinaculum and dislocated posterior tibialis tendon during the NBA Finals, something the Celtics called a “rare” injury. Porzingis missed Games 3 and 4 of the Finals but played through the injury in Game 5, helping Boston win its record 18th NBA championship.

It was announced Tuesday that Porzingis would undergo surgery and miss this summer’s Olympics. A timeline for his return has yet to be determined, but Porzingis said earlier this month that the recovery process could take a “few months.”

“Kristaps, after his surgery, we don’t know exactly when he’ll be back,” Stevens told Russillo in an episode published Wednesday. “But, you know, he’ll probably miss at least the very start of the season.”

Porzingis was a key acquisition for the Celtics last summer, averaging 20.1 points and 7.2 rebounds in the regular season. However he played in just seven total playoff games between a calf strain he suffered in the first round and his injury in the Finals.

Stevens said potentially not having the Lithuanian big man to start the year gives Boston a chance to experiment.

“And so that’ll be a great opportunity for us to do things different and have to find different solutions and those types of things that come with it,” Stevens said.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.