Kristaps Porzingis has left the Celtics-76ers game and is doubtful to return.
As the Boston Celtics duke it out with the Philadelphia 76ers in a back-and-forth battle on Christmas Day, disaster struck when star center Kristaps Porzingis suffered an apparent ankle injury in the second quarter and left the court.
Was this something serious? Did the big man just need a break? At the time, fans didn't really know, but when he didn't return to the court at the start of the third, it became somewhat apparent that something wasn't quite right.
Well, midway through the third quarter, fans got their answer as to what went wrong, with the Celtics' official social media account letting it be known that their center had, in fact, suffered an apparent ankle injury and was “doubtful” to return to the court.
Now granted, even with Porzingis out, the Celtics still have plenty of talent at the five spot, with Luke Kornett and Al Horford both able to split time at the four and the five spot thanks to their range from deep and Neemias Queta seeing the court on Christmas day as a super-sized screener for the likes of Payton Pritchard and Sam Hauser. Still, in a game against Joel Embiid, who remains the most dominant traditional big man in the NBA when he's healthy and playing at full strength, losing Porzingis, who was acquired in part to be a “Process” killer, certainly adds a level of difficulty to a game the Celtics should be able to win.
If this proves to be a one-game absence for Porzingis, the Celtics should be fine moving forward, as even a loss on Christmas Day is rather inconsequential over the course of an 82-game season. But if this injury ends up extending past Santa Claus's return to the North Pole, then that becomes a completely different story, as the Celtics might have to get creative at the deadline to strengthen their big man depth just in case.
