Porzingis said he underwent imaging on his sprained left ankle this week and that “it looked better than doctors expected.” He took part in a 30-minute individual workout at the Target Center on Thursday morning, and said he felt as good as he has since he twisted the ankle during Boston’s 118-114 loss to the 76ers on Christmas Day.
Porzingis underwent surgery on that same ankle last summer because of a rare injury he suffered during the NBA Finals against the Mavericks, and he missed the first 17 games of this year. He said he does not believe this recent tweak is related to that absence, but he acknowledged that he pushed to return a bit earlier than he originally anticipated.
“I’m not going to lie, it’s super-annoying, super-frustrating to not be able to catch a good rhythm and already, boom, again some small thing happens and you’re out for a couple of games and dealing with this,” he said. “But this is part of the life we chose. My body is very particular so these things can happen to me. I have to make sure I do everything I can to prevent these things as much as possible.”
Celtics forward Jayson Tatum is well-positioned to be selected as a starter for next month’s NBA All-Star Game after the first fan voting returns were released Thursday. Tatum has received 1,385,851 votes, putting him second among Eastern Conference frontcourt players behind Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo, who has 1,710,630. Knicks big man Karl-Anthony Towns holds the third starting slot with 1,099,966. There is a massive drop-off after that, with Magic forward Paolo Banchero more than 600,000 votes behind Towns.
Brown is in fifth with 433,636 votes. Among guards, the Celtics’ Derrick White is in 10th place with 120,706 votes.
The fan vote will count for 50 percent of the overall vote, with players and a panel of media members counting for 25 percent apiece. The reserves will be selected by coaches.
The game’s format has been overhauled, however. This year, four teams of eight will compete in a mini tournament. Three of the teams will be comprised of the 24 All-Stars, and the fourth will include star rookies and second-year players.
Thursday’s game marked the start of a grueling month in which the Celtics will play road games against seven of the top eight teams from the powerful Western Conference. The slate figures to present unique challenges for the Celtics, who struggled a bit during an 8-6 December.
“It’s just a good opportunity for us,” Mazzulla said. “Every game’s hard, but I’m just excited for what we’re going through from the standpoint of whatever the case is, what our record is. But I like where we’re at as a team mentally because we’re working through stuff and I think it’s a lot of fun.
“And we’re just excited about that, like, the challenge a road trip brings, a road trip against some of the top teams, but also life in the NBA, you’re not always going to be at your best, so how we stick together and go through that is fun to me.”
Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him @adamhimmelsbach.
