A few million dollars was lost but a championship ring was gained. Kristaps Porzingis was one of last year’s biggest off-season moves for the Boston Celtics. In a bold move, the Celtics traded fan favorite Marcus Smart to the Memphis Grizzlies as part of a three-team deal that brought Porzingis from the Washington Wizards. The C’s became unstoppable after Porzingis joined them, he was a key piece in their championship run of 2024.

Riddled with injuries during his time with the Dallas Mavericks and the New York Knicks, Porzingis came back stronger and cemented his status as one of the league’s top and most adaptable centers during his time with the Wizards. Raking numbers that he had never before, in his career-best season with the Wizards he averaged 23.2 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks a game.

Born on 2 August 1995 in Liepaja, Latvia, a town with only 70,000 people living there. Porzingis learned to play basketball on a jerry-rigged hardwood with a plexiglass backboard. The backboard was fastened to rusted metal pipes. All of these materials were salvaged from a run-down public court which was to be wiped from existence. He lost his sense of time while there, working on his skills with his oldest brother. “The wooden floor, the basket, the chain net—that was my church,” he said while speaking to Esquire.

Porzingis’ parents are hoopers too. His father, Talis Porzingis, played semi-pro before switching his profession to a bus driver. His mother, Ingrida Porzingis was a player on Latvia’s women’s youth national basketball team, she has always supported and guided him, making sure he stayed on the right path. This dedication even led her to travel to America to watch his games in person. She poured extra attention into her son, as her third child, Toms, had passed away at just 14 months old, four years before Kristaps Porzingis was born. Both his parents are from Liepaja, making him Latvian.

Kristpas Porzingis’ comeback from “rare” injury soon?

After dropping 20 points in the first game against the Mavericks during the finals, Porzingis suffered a “torn medial retinaculum allowing dislocation of the posterior tibialis tendon” in the second game against the Mavs. However, he returned to the court during game 5 to make history with the C’s by winning their 18th Championship. He played through the pain. After scripting history, the Unicorn underwent surgery for his ankle injury.

The surgery happened in June and his expected recovery time was five to six months. Even if we are very optimistic then in November, we could see the Latvian big man back in action. But if things don’t go his way, then the end of December is likely when he’ll be back.

“I’d say we’re very, very pleased with where he is, and maybe a little surprised,” Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens said about Porzingis’ progress. The Celtics plan to proceed cautiously with Porzingis, avoiding any rush in his return. They already have Al Horford covering the center position, and Sam Hauser showed solid performance during the preseason.