DALLAS — The NBA Finals underwent a major shakeup the day before Game 3 (Wednesday, 8:30 p.m. ET on ABC) when the Boston Celtics announced that Kristaps Porzingis had suffered a “rare injury,” putting his state for Wednesday's game against Dallas. Mavericks (and the rest of the series) in doubt.
Porzingis has a medial retinaculum tear in his left leg, but told reporters Tuesday he would do whatever it took to play. However, Boston coach Joe Mazzulla said the final decision would be up to team doctors.
Porzingis had missed five weeks with a right calf injury heading into the Finals, but returned for Game 1 and is averaging 16 points on 60% shooting along with 2.5 blocks per game in this series, helping the Celtics to take a 2-0. advantage over the Mavericks in Boston.
What will this mean for the Celtics and Mavericks? Our NBA experts break it all down.
1. Fill in the blank: The news about Kristaps Porzingis' injury was __.
Tim Bontemps: About. The Celtics have put themselves in a strong position to close out the Finals. Boston is plus-25 in the 44 minutes Porzingis has played in this series, and is even in the 52 minutes he hasn't. It was already going to be a challenge to control this road series like Boston did in the first two games at TD Garden, but the level of difficulty simply increased with Porzingis' uncertain status.
Tim MacMahon: Confused. Maybe that's because the Celtics' announcement used a bunch of big words that I didn't learn during my eight years in college to describe the injury. I was also a little confused that Mazzulla called it a “serious injury” but that Porzingis was listed as day-to-day.
Unfortunately, it's also ironic, considering how injuries were a major factor in Porzingis' disappointing stay in Dallas, and that he hasn't played a game at American Airlines Center since being traded at the 2022 deadline.
Dave McMenamin: A reminder. As bleak as things may have seemed after falling 2-0 in Boston, the series returning to Dallas and possibly facing a Celtics team without Porzingis could be just the crack in the door the Mavs needed to break through and make of this a competitive tournament. series.
2. If Porzingis is limited or out, how does that change the series?
MacMahon: He places great emphasis on attacking the Mavericks' paint. Rim protection is a strength for Boston with Porzingis on the floor, as he allowed the league's lowest field goal percentage (44.3%) in the paint as an opposing defender (minimum 500 shots), per Second's tracking Spectrum. Dallas' offense ranked second in field goal percentage on dunks and layups after the trade deadline.
The Mavs also had 54 dunks through the first three rounds of the playoffs, the most of any team in a postseason over the last decade, according to ESPN Stats & Information, but Porzingis and the Celtics nullified that threat in the first two. games.
McMenamin: Certainly, Porzingis' 16 points per game on 60% shooting from the field in the series so far is something Boston would rather not lose. That said, Al Horford has attempted just 12 shots in these Finals and has seen his playing time reduced by about 10 minutes per game to accommodate Porzingis' return. The 38-year-old showed that he has more to give than that, adding 22 points and 15 rebounds to eliminate the Cleveland Cavaliers in the second round and 23 points against the Indiana Pacers to take a 3-0 lead in the finals. conference finals. Not a bad option if Porzingis can't go.
Good time: Boston's rim protection suffered at times with Porzingis sidelined, which could open the door for some of the lob moves MacMahon mentioned if Porzingis can't go. The other thing we need to focus on is Horford's minutes. When he's gone over 30 minutes, and particularly when he's gone over 35, he's started to look his age in these playoffs. Coming off a 10-day layoff and with his minutes under his control with Porzingis back, Horford was excellent in the first two games of this series, including being able to switch to Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving and hold at times. If he has to start playing a lot of minutes, especially with only one day off between Games 3 and 4, that could have a big impact.
3. Fact or fiction? Boston can still sweep the Mavs without Porzingis.
McMenamin: Fiction. A sweep in this scenario is still very rare. It has happened only twice in the last 20 years (San Antonio in 2007 and Golden State in 2018). If the Mavs can generate something from the outside with the series at home (Boston won Games 1 and 2 by a total of 25 points despite outscoring Dallas by 39 points from 3), they should be able to bring it back to TD Garden. for Game 5.
Good time: Made. Do I think Boston will sweep Dallas? No, i do not do it. But the Celtics were in control of the first two games of this series and didn't make as many shots as they normally would, particularly in Game 2. While that is affected somewhat by Porzingis' potential sideline, Dallas still doesn't have a lot of answers to protect Boston's starting five. We haven't seen Jayson Tatum deliver a signature performance in this series yet; he is more than ready to explode.
So, yes, I hope to return to Boston for Game 5, but it's also within the realm of possibility for the Celtics to get two road wins. Over the past three postseasons, the Celtics are 20-7 on the road, tied with the 1991-93 Chicago Bulls for the best three-year road playoff winning percentage in NBA history.
MacMahon: Fiction, but I don't think the Celtics would pull off a sweep with or without Porzingis. I anticipate Irving will have a bounce-back performance after playing well below his standards during the trip to Boston. The Mavs surely hope the old saying about role players performing best at home is true, as Dallas' bench averaged just 14.5 points in Games 1 and 2.
