The Boston Celtics improved to 48-19 for the season after Friday night's road win over the Miami Heat. They continue to cement their position as the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference as we slowly approach the playoffs.
The top priority for the Celtics is to get healthy for the postseason. The biggest point of concern on that front has been Kristaps Porzingis. The Latvian big man had a star-crossed season after undergoing retinaculum surgery in the offseason. He ended up missing the first 17 games of the season and has been playing himself into form since then.
Recently, however, things took a turn for the worse for Porzingis. The 29-year-old has been dealing with a viral illness over the last few weeks, forcing him to miss the last eight games. The more concerning part of it was the fact that the medical staff wasn't able to identify the issue ailing him.
Injury Report at BKN:
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) March 15, 2025
Jaylen Brown (right knee posterior impingement) - QUESTIONABLE
Al Horford (left big toe sprain) - DOUBTFUL
Kristaps Porzingis (illness non-Covid) - PROBABLE
Jayson Tatum (right knee tendinopathy) - QUESTIONABLE
Derrick White (left knee contusion) - DOUBTFUL
Celtics News: Kristaps Porzingis Close to Returning After Missing Last 8 Games
On Saturday, Celtics fans received a positive update on Porzingis. For the first time since his illness, Porzingis was designated "Probable" on the team's official injury report before their game against the Nets in Brooklyn.
Even if Porzingis doesn't play, this designation shows that he is very close to returning. Boston has several other starters on the injury report, but that is to be expected with the Celtics coming off a road back-to-back. The team will increasingly rest players down the stretch now that playoff seeding is all but decided.
Porzingis, on the other hand, will likely try to play more regularly to build his strength and conditioning before the playoffs. He has only played in 32 games this season and head coach Joe Mazzulla would ideally want to see him in action more before making his final rotation decisions for the postseason.