NBA Player News

Porzingis closed with 20 points (8-13 FG, 2-4 3Pt, 2-2 FT), six rebounds and three blocks across 21 minutes during Thursday's 107-89 victory over the Mavericks in Game 1 of the NBA Finals.

Head coach Joe Mazzulla wanted Porzingis to come off the bench in the first game of the Finals, and the star power forward responded admirably in his first taste of competitive action since April 29. It remains to be seen if Porzingis will move to the starting unit for Game 2 on Sunday or if he'll again come off the bench, but either way, his shooting ability and length on defense could be majors factors in the series, as was the case Thursday.

Porzingis will come off the bench in Game 1 of the 2024 NBA Finals against the Mavericks on Thursday.

Head coach Joe Mazulla said that Porzingis wasn't going to have any minutes restriction in Game 1, but the team opted to play it safe with his conditioning level, and he'll come off the bench. That decision makes sense given that Porzingis hasn't played since logging 14 minutes in the 102-88 win over the Heat on April 29 in Game 4 of the first-round series. For Game 1 of the Finals, Al Horford will remain in the starting lineup, though he's still expected to experience a downgrade in his minutes as Porzingis sees action off the bench.

Coach Joe Mazulla said that Porzingis will not have any minutes restrictions in Game 1 versus the Mavericks on Thursday, Steven Bulpett of the Boston Herald reports.

Mazulla added that he hasn't yet decided if KP will start, but it sounds like Porzingis will be a full-go for Game 1 of the Finals. His return will result in fewer minutes for Xavier Tillman and Al Horford.

Porzingis (calf) said he will play in Game 1 of the NBA Finals against Dallas on Thursday, Souichi Terada of The Springfield Republican reports.

This has been the expectation for several days after Porzingis was able to take part in multiple scrimmages at Boston's recent practices. Per Tim Bontemps of ESPN.com, Porzingis said it's still "open" when it comes to what his conditioning level will be after being limited to light on-court work. Porzingis hasn't played since Game 4 of the opening-round matchup versus Miami and averaged 14.0 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 2.0 blocks and 1.7 steals in 30.3 minutes over the first three matchups of that series.

Porzingis (calf) is expected to play in Game 1 of the NBA Finals against the Mavericks on Thursday, Shams Charania of The Athletic reports.

Porzingis has managed to participate in multiple scrimmages in recent days without any setbacks. He hasn't played since Game 4 of the Celtics' opening-round series versus Miami on April 29, so it will be interesting to see how many minutes he can handle to open the series against Dallas.

Reid averaged 11.1 points, 3.7 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 0.8 blocks and 0.5 steals across 22.6 minutes in 16 playoff appearances.

The Sixth Man of the Year award winner did not fully live up to his regular-season standards in the playoffs. However, he did have a few great games against Denver and Dallas in the postseason as the Timberwolves put together an impressive run. The 24-year-old averaged 13.5 points, 5.2 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 0.9 blocks and 0.8 steals across 24.2 minutes while appearing in 81 regular-season games. Reid will likely be a key part of the rotation next season as the Timberwolves aim for another strong playoff push in a stacked Western Conference.

Gobert provided nine points (4-8 FG, 1-2 FT), five rebounds, one assist and one steal in 26 minutes during Thursday's 124-103 loss to the Mavericks in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals.

Gobert's 26 minutes were his lowest of the series despite recording just one foul. The 2023-24 Defensive Player of the Year was often forced to play away from the rim and come out to meet Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving on the perimeter in the pick-and-roll. Gobert averaged 11.8 points, 7.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 34.0 minutes across the five games against Dallas.

Lively posted nine points (3-3 FG, 3-6 FT), eight rebounds, three assists and three blocks over 25 minutes during Thursday's 124-103 win over Minnesota in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals.

Lively returned to action Thursday after missing Game 4 due to a neck injury. The rookie big man returned to his role of coming off the bench but splitting minutes at the center position with Daniel Gafford as a platoon. Lively averaged 9.5 points, 7.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.5 blocks in 22.0 minutes across his four appearances in the Western Conference Finals.

Gafford amassed 11 points (3-3 FG, 5-6 FT), nine rebounds and one block across 20 minutes during Thursday's 124-103 win over the Timberwolves in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals.

With the return of Dereck Lively, Gafford saw his playing time decrease from 31 minutes in Game 4 to 20 in Game 5. Regardless, Gafford was able to maintain his productivity, recording at least one block for the 11th straight contest. The 24-year-old big averaged 10.8 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.6 blocks in 24.4 minutes across the five games in the Western Conference Finals.

Coach Joe Mazzulla said Porzingis (calf) participated in a couple of drills during Friday's practice and is pleased with where the big man is at in his rehab progress, Tim Bontemps of ESPN.com reports.

Porzingis was still mostly limited to individual shooting drills during the media portion of Friday's practice, but he looked to be moving well. He hasn't played since Game 4 of the Celtics' opening-round series versus Miami on April 29, so Porzingis will likely need to get at least a few days of 5-on-5 work in before getting full clearance for game action. The Celtics face the Mavericks in Game 1 of the NBA Finals next Thursday, June 6, giving Porzingis ample time to increase his activity.