With veteran guard Jrue Holiday now on his way out of Boston, the next domino to potentially fall from the Celtics‘ core could be star big man Kristaps Porzingis.
The one-time All-Star was solid again during the 2024-25 campaign, averaging nearly 20 points in under 30 minutes per contest, but what Boston fans will most likely remember is how Porzingis’ year ended.
For the second straight year, the Latvian center missed significant time in the regular season and was severely limited in the playoffs.
Porzingis addressed fans’ concerns in a post on Instagram on Tuesday afternoon, looking to assure folks that things were going well.
“Kristaps Porzingis on IG: ‘Thanks for all the support and questions about my health 🫶 I’ve been feeling excellent all offseason and looking forward to a healthy and strong European championship tournament with my NT (national team) 🇱🇻'” HoopsHype senior NBA insider Michael Scotto relayed on Bluesky.
Kristaps Porzingis’ Mystery Illness Plagued End of Season, Playoffs in Another Otherwise Solid Year
Porzingis finished the 2024-25 season with 19.5 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.5 blocks and 28.8 minutes per game while shooting a career-best 41.2% on three-pointers. He missed 40 contests, however, and hasn’t played more than 65 tilts in a season since his second year in the league in 2016-17.
Porzingis missed only eight games between Dec. 27 and Feb. 26, before a mysterious virus caused him to sit out 13 of the team’s final 23 regular season contests. Porzingis’ numbers then dropped to 7.7 points, 4.6 rebounds, 0.8 blocks and 21.0 minutes per game with a brutal .316/.154/.689 shooting line across Boston’s 11 playoff contests.
How Does Jrue Holiday Trade Impact Porzingis’ Future in Boston?
It was reported this spring that of the Celtics biggest trade candidates, the likeliest to be moved were Holiday, Porzingis and guard Derrick White.
With Holiday out of the picture, the chances of Porzingis also being moved may have decreased, though he still appears more likely to get shipped out than White.
In the aftermath of the Holiday trade to the Portland Trail Blazers, Scotto reported that White would fetch a hefty price to any prospective buyer.
“With Jrue Holiday to the Blazers for Anfernee Simons and 2 seconds, the next Celtics trade candidates to monitor are Kristaps Porzingis (expiring $30.7 million) and Sam Hauser (4 years, $45 million). Derrick White has drawn trade interest, but it’d take a massive haul to get him,” Scotto wrote.
