When the Boston Celtics traded for Kristaps Porzingis in 2023, his injury history was the one big concern.
Now, that injury history may have a silver lining, as Porzingis is uniquely qualified to dole out hard-won advice to his good friend, superstar Jaylen Brown, as he deals with a knee injury heading into the NBA playoffs.
Porzingis first mentioned sharing his perspective with Brown after a New York Knicks game two weeks ago – a game in which Brown didn’t look like himself. He started showing up on injury reports at the end of March with a bone bruise on his knee, but tried to play through it with varying results. After putting up six points against the Knicks, Brown rested for the final three games of the season.
At Celtics practice ahead of the first round of the playoffs, Porzingis said he circled back with the superstar guard.
“We definitely talked about it, just with my history. And also, some of the knee stuff that had bothered me in the past, we definitely talked. I gave him my point of view and what I thought could help him,” he said.
Porzingis exploded into the NBA with Knicks in 2015 and was runner-up for Rookie of the Year in that season. But his All-Star career was sidetracked by a torn ACL in 2018. Through multiple trades, he battled an additional meniscus tear and, mostly recently, a lower leg injury that required surgery following the Celtics’ 2024 championship. Because he’s missed substantial time due to injuries in multiple seasons, he’s been branded – at times – as snake bitten.
When Porzingis was traded to the Celtics, there wasn’t much thought given to the notion that perhaps he’d be the type to sit down with a teammate and offer counsel about managing an injury, but nobody has had the rollercoaster career Kristaps has. Brown happens to be a close friend, (they’ve branded themselves “Cookies ‘n Cream” for their two-way game and bond off the court), and Porzingis has All-Star talent. He’s well-positioned to offer substantive words to Brown as he approaches the playoffs having looked slightly banged-up.
It doesn’t matter the sport; the athlete will almost always want to push through an injury to play in the postseason. Brown, who prides himself on his self-proclaimed warrior mentality, is no exception. It’s tough for even a trusted coach to reach a player who’s hurt, but has a lot on the line with his or her team. Porzingis can level with Brown as a fellow teammate, someone who’s been there, and as a friend.
He offered an optimistic update about Brown after practice.
“He did the things necessary to be as healthy and as feeling good as possible for this run we’re about to have,” he said. “He looks good, he looks good. He’s always saying he feels good, but he actually looks good, and that’s most important.”
The Celtics have to hope Brown is continuing down the right path as they prepare to defend their title. They need the reigning NBA Finals MVP on the court this spring.