The Boston Celtics defeated the Miami Heat and are on track to qualify for the Eastern Conference semifinals.
They were expected to win against a team without Jimmy Butler, but the loss in Game 2 was a blow to Jayson Tatum and his guys. The team has since recovered, but recently there appeared to be more bad news, as Kristaps Porzingis entered the locker room in the final seconds of the first half of Game 4.
Unlike the Miami Heat, who have a long list of players on their injury report, the Boston Celtics only added one player to their report, Porzingis. And unfortunately, according to the NBA’s official injury report, Joe Mazzula’s team will have to play Game 5 without the Latvian in the lineup.
The 7-foot-3 Unicorn has had a very healthy season, even playing in the most games since April. However, during Game 4, Porzingis suffered a calf injury that was apparently not caused by physical contact and was escorted to the team’s locker room.
Even with the Unicorns missing the rest of the game, Jayson Tatum and the team did a great job of spreading the load on offense. After the contest, the Boston Celtics head coach also praised his team’s performance despite the absence of their starting center.
“Everybody just assumed he was strengthening,” Mazzulla said.
Initially, the Cs released a statement claiming the sharpshooter was simply suffering from tightness in his right calf. However, not many fans were convinced by the team’s update. Sports doctors claimed the issue could be much more serious than thought. As Brian Sutterer correctly predicted, Porzingis did indeed suffer from a severe soleus strain, as reported by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Although a soleus muscle strain is not as serious an injury as an Achilles tendon rupture, recovery time can range from a few days to a month or more depending on the severity of the case. But even without Kristaps Porzingis, the East’s No. 1 seed should have no trouble getting past a severely undermanned South Florida team tonight.
