Kristaps Porzingis dealt with 'post-viral syndrome' during NBA playoffs, said Celtics president Brad Stevens

Yahoo

19-05-2025

The Boston Celtics' attempt to repeat as NBA champions was hurt in part by Kristaps Porziņģis' inability to stay on the floor and make a meaningful contribution during this postseason.
Speaking to reporters on Monday, Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens addressed Porzingis' illness and what that might portend for the offseason and next season.
Advertisement
"I don't think anyone was more frustrated than him," Stevens explained. "And I felt for him because the way it was described to me was just post-viral syndrome, which is just lingering effects of a long illness."
The Celtics described Porzingis' condition as an upper respiratory and non-COVID illness during the Eastern Conference semifinals series with the New York Knicks. The veteran center played 13 minutes in Game 1 and 12 minutes in Game 5, with coach Joe Mazzulla saying afterward that Porzingis didn't play in the second half because "he couldn't breathe."
In the six-game playoff loss to the Knicks, Porzingis averaged 4.2 points, 3.7 rebounds and 0.8 blocks while playing 15.5 minutes per game. He was able to contribute more in Boston's first-round series versus the Orlando Magic, averaging 12 points, 5.8 rebounds, 1.8 blocks and 27.4 minutes.
Advertisement
Those numbers were far below the 19.5 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.5 blocks Porzingis averaged during the regular season with 41% shooting on 250 3-point attempts. However, he appeared in only 42 games while recovering from ankle surgery, then struggling with his illness that sidelined him for eight games in late February through early March.
Stevens said he thought Porzingis had "turned a corner" in his recovery and cited his 34-point performance against the Knicks in the second-to-last game of the regular season. Yet the demanding playoff schedule likely prevented him from being able to rest and recover further, which also applied to Jaylen Brown and the torn meniscus he was playing through.
Denver Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon would likely agree with that point, expressing the same concern after Sunday's Game 7 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
"A travel day and a recovery day, just two days, I think the product of the game would be a lot better," Gordon said. "Just to give all these professional athletes just one more day of rest, and you would see a higher level of basketball. Probably less blowouts."
Advertisement
However, the Celtics don't appear to be worried about Porzingis making a full recovery during the offseason. Stevens said during his presser that the 7-footer is expected to play for Latvia in the FIBA Eurobasket tournament, scheduled from Aug. 27 to Sept. 14.
Porzingis is under contract for one more season at $30.7 million, finishing off the two-year, $60 million extension he signed after the Celtics acquired him before the 2023-24 season.