When Kristaps Porzingis made his triumphant return following a 38-day hiatus, the Celtics looked fiercer than ever. In the first two games of the Finals, the Cs showed no mercy to their opponents. However, the joy didn’t last long as Game 2 saw KP6 suffer another injury scare in front of the TD Garden crowd in the third quarter. Unsure what exactly made him fumble, Porzingis kept at it. But it was painfully obvious that something snapped.

As the matchup moved to crunch time, Joe Mazzulla decided that was enough of ‘Zinger’ on the court. Al Horford replaced him. Soon, the “injury scare” turned out to be true. A thorough diagnosis by the medical team saw ‘The Unicorn’ with a rare injury – a torn medial retinaculum injury that had dislocated his posterior tibialis tendon. Yup, it is as serious as it sounds. Coach Mazzulla confirmed after Game 2 that it was indeed serious and that he had no idea when Porzingis would be back!

Well, we didn’t have to wait long as the Latvian big man has been officially listed ‘Out’ for Game 3, catch the live action here. Boston had announced the decision an hour and 45 minutes before tip-off at American Airlines Center.

The 7’2 center had missed every game of Boston after sustaining a non-contact injury in Game 4 against the Heat in the playoffs. While analysts and the Celtics coach regularly updated everyone about his return, Porzingis was only able to suit up for Game 1 of the Finals. But there was no sign of rust or a subpar performance from the All-Star. In fact, Kristaps was the man of the hour for their first win!

He set the tone for the rest of the game and series, finishing with 20 points—on 8-of-13 shooting — six rebounds and three blocks in 21 minutes. “He was great on both ends of the floor, defensive execution, game plan, playing for a spot in the offensive end, being physical, and making plays on both ends of the floor. That’s the KP that helped us get to where we are today,” a thrilled Mazzulla said after the game.

While the ‘Beantown’ does have enough firepower to go in the absence of Porzingis, his latest “rare” injury does bring a lot of concerns. And with good reason.

Just how serious is the latest injury of Kristaps Porzingis?

As soon as KP’s injury was revealed, obliging doctors and certified trainers all took to X to break down what the injury was. According to Brian Sutterer MD, a sports medicine doctor, PM&R trained, “The medial retinaculum is like a seat belt that keeps the tendons in place … The posterior tibialis tendon is one of said tendons.” So, going by this, the tear was what led to the dislocation of the bone.

Nevertheless, the Celtics confirmed that it was completely unrelated to the calf strain he was diagnosed with earlier. While it is good to know that the injury-addled player that Kristaps is, is free from multiple simultaneous injuries, his rare injury is in no way comforting. As per physical therapy doctor and movement coach, Dr. Rajpal Brar, DPT, a recent known case of the same was Alexis Sánchez, a soccer star from Inter Milan.

During a friendly match with Columbia, the Chilean sustained tendon damage and a dislocated left ankle. After much consultation and diagnosis, surgery was decided to be the right route. And he was out for three months. A timeline we can expect in the case of Kristaps Porzingis, too. Without further details on the big man, it’s better to prepare for the worst. That way, the good news, if any, we hear will be twice as sweet.

But before you go, be sure to check this video of Leonardo Armato’s take on Caitlin Clark vs Angel Reese.

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