I don't know. The Pacers are playing well, and added minutes to Al could decrease his effectiveness. Firsty thing they need to do is wrap this up in 5 games and reduce wear and tear for everyone.
Green Zinger Tea - Kristaps Porziņģis 2023-24
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Pacers are playing the Knicks should they both advance. Celtics would get ORL/CLE and should be able to handle either of them without Porizingis.
We wouldn't face Indy until the conference finals, no reseeding in the NBA playoffs. KP makes either Cleveland/Orlando a tougher opponent, but neither team has someone as mobile as Bam to really make things annoying.
Kornet can absolutely play against either Orlando or Cleveland. This is where the many "3 starters and the bench" games start to pay off. That, and having 4 quality NBA centers on the roster, plus Queta in a pinch.
When Jrue, DWhite, and Tatum guard like that on the perimeter, you can absolutely play Kornet big minutes against this version of Miami. We saw that tonight.
When Jrue, DWhite, and Tatum guard like that on the perimeter, you can absolutely play Kornet big minutes against this version of Miami. We saw that tonight.
I cannot speak to his credibility, but I've seen similar videos discussing Achilles tear injuries in the past.
The one bit of potential good news is that the physician in the video notes that there are some simple diagnostic tests that can be done in the locker room, and so the team and KP would have a pretty good idea already if it is an Achilles injury. And the early remarks from the team and even KP seem encouraging.
I assume they will know a lot more later today.
A significant Achilles tear is easily diagnosed at the bedside with a test called the Thompson test. Essentially you squeeze the calf and the foot should plantar flex or point downward, indicating that the tendon and the muscle are contiguous. A partial tear can be a bit harder to diagnose, but that seems quite unlikely given what I’ve seen so far.
Thanks. Sports medicine guy on Lowe's podcast mentioned this test when he was discussing Giannis's injury a couple of weeks ago.
More on Thompson test here if anyone cares: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diagnostics/thompson-test-for-achilles-tendon-rupture
If it’s a calf strain, which everyone is speculating, the best case scenario is a couple weeks. The more likely scenario is what’s going on with Giannis right now and that appears to around a 4 week recovery.
As you know, that's fun in concept but Queta for anything other than a rare matchup or a few minutes is a recipe for giving up valuable possessions in the playoffs. You may have to wait until October for this...
If be surprised if it's anything less than 4 weeks at this point. He was already dealing with different things. And they won't want to endanger the Achilles.
Game 1 of the Finals is five weeks from Thursday, for reference.
Edited to add slightly more substance: Best case scenario is Orlando - Cleveland goes 7 games (imminently possible!) and concludes on Sunday, buying us a week's rest right there before next series.
Edited to add slightly more substance: Best case scenario is Orlando - Cleveland goes 7 games (imminently possible!) and concludes on Sunday, buying us a week's rest right there before next series.
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In real time, I thought the two were related but looking at the video, he rolled his left ankle, while the the locker room pics show the boot on his right foot.
Pretty much debunks the myth that Mazzulla should have pulled him from the game after the initial ankle injury, and committed coaching malpractice by not doing so.
Well, had he pulled him after the first injury, the second one would have been much less likely to happen
My galaxy brain: he's more likely to play in the finals with an injury that makes him miss the next 2 rounds than if didn't get injured last night
Do we need to bring up Porzingis injury history again to save Mazzulla some heat? KP is injury prone and is likely going to get hurt - its nobody's fault except for mother nature.
Unless you expect Mazzulla to know exactly when the next tweak is coming.
Unless you expect Mazzulla to know exactly when the next tweak is coming.
Idk. An injury to one leg can cause him to overcompensate and injure the other. That said, the only way to make sure he doesn't get injured is to not play him. There's always a risk. Players have to take care of themselves too. If you are hurt, go down, which he did with the right leg injury. The tweak of the left must have felt like something he could manage. It was a slow motion car wreck though after the first tweak. Just felt like something else would happen.
1. If people want to partially blame Joe after the first ankle twist since KP was questionable at game time & he's a player that needs to be handled with kid gloves... that's fine
2. If people feel Joe is innocent of blame here and say KP is injury-prone, & it was bound to happen... that's also fine
I know what camp I sit in.
2. If people feel Joe is innocent of blame here and say KP is injury-prone, & it was bound to happen... that's also fine
I know what camp I sit in.
Yeah this is one of those where it depends on the severity. Nobody knows how bad it is except KP, docs/trainers, and a couple of org folks. And even then it's an estimate, which will change based on how he responds to treatment, icing, etc. Could miss one game or two rounds, and neither would be a surprise.
I don’t really blame CJM for anything in this case, but I’d personally waste a foul or TO anytime I saw KP even mildly limping. KP is such a unique risk/reward player that I would personally err on the extreme side of caution in a way I wouldn’t for almost anyone else on the roster.
Almost? Who else on Celt's comes within a country mile of KP's " unique risk/reward"??
I was mostly thinking about Tatum simply because of how important he is rather than any comparison to his injury history.
Does that mean you would of pulled Tatum after tweaking his ankle on Bam's sleezy move?
Hmm... that sounds snarkier than I meant.
But seriously, even with the higher loss of losing Tatum due to a "compensating for a small injury" injury.... KP is SO MUCH MORE fragile that I stand by my ""almost"
The bottom line is that I mostly agree with you: probably should of pulled him the moment he tweaked his ankle, even if a foul was required. Given the lead, the downside is (was!) smaller
than the upside.
But in CJM's defense, these guys have big egos and are driven. Pulling him might be seen as over protective. That's a poor reason to not-Pull-him, but it might be the grain that tipped the scale.
Oh totally, i think you’re right that a lot more goes into these decisions behind the scenes than my dumb brain seeing him limping and immediately freaking out. Alienating him over something that ends up being mild would be a bad look.
I bet if CJM saw the first ankle twist, and it were a regular season game, he might well have pulled him out then. But as Scott Van Pelt reminds us, it's the playoffs, the risk-reward is different and you gotta be willing to spend all the credit you've piled up in the bank to this point. Giving Porzingis a little rope to determine for himself if it's no big deal or not, seems pretty reasonable given the circumstances. Yeah we were up like 18 around then, but it was still pretty early in the game. If KP can go, you want him to go.
It was a little tweak and he was fine the next time down the floor. If the coach pulled every player or even only the key players every time there was an easily recoverable tweak we’d be subbing guys in and out all playoffs for no reason. Was KP maybe overcompensating for the turned ankle? It didn’t seem so as he appeared fine but who knows. Sometimes injuries just happen when you’re playing a competitive sport. What if Tatum did his Achilles two plays after the Bam incident? Nobody was screaming to take him out of the game when he was laying on the floor but you can bet that this board would be in an uproar if that happened. It’s standard results oriented thinking….unless you can honestly say you were calling for Joe to remove KP following the turned ankle that didn’t appear to affect him.
I largely agree with this. I'm arguing it was fine for Mazzulla to leave him in, basically to not overreact. But we do need to acknowledge that the injury history and risk profile is very different for KP than it is for Tatum (who basically has only missed time under really weird and unusual circumstances, or being a healthy scratch for rest). We're all very protective of our proverbial glass cannon.
There were at least 2 people in the gamethread yelping about his initial tweak, who did so before the big one took him out. So credit to them, I suppose - at least it wasn't hindsight.
The "KP as Miami-zone-buster" story has seemed overplayed to me in this series. They've generally beaten the zone with either DWhite or Jrue driving its gaps, or Tatum running high screens and drawing 2 to the ball, then making good decisions. Having shooters everywhere all the time also helps, but I think they can use Kornet screening high for Tatum/guards just as well.
Most of KP's damage has been against man, when they can get him switched onto guys. I think the offense will be mostly fine against this very talent-limited Miami team.
Most of KP's damage has been against man, when they can get him switched onto guys. I think the offense will be mostly fine against this very talent-limited Miami team.
Yes that is why I purposely added this last part as for some people it was not being results oriented. When I saw him run down the floor and be fine I didn’t expect him to be subbed out as there didn’t seem to be reason for it so I can’t say he should have personally.
Yeah his input was sprinting up and down the floor the next couple possessions without signaling that he was banged up. Only the player knows how an ankle feels on a turn like that and most times the initial reaction is an overreaction because it is more fear of a bad turn than it is an actual injury.
I was many beers deep, I should have added what I think a Queta game is. Like 6 points and 8 boards in 7 minutes, where roughly half the boards are off his own bunny misses while just creating all sorts of havoc, good and bad, on the floor haha
Not sure Joe deserves any scorn for anything other then for not putting XTill or Queta in and telling them to knock the shit out of Bam (who is rapidly moving up my list of dirtiest players) and then paying his fine.
A NBA coach that took their star players out of playoff games every single time the player rolled an ankle wouldn’t be an NBA coach for very long. The ethos of doing everything possible to avoid injury to a star player just doesn’t exist in the NBA or any professional team sport, for that matter.
Injury report at 5pm, I'm guessing. This is torture though, over here lighting sage.
Context matters
KP isn't every single athlete, and the Miami Heat aren't like every other NBA playoff opponent (they are the worst playoff team)
He was questionable before the start of the game last night with leg issues.
KP is by FAR the one player in the NBA everyone is concerned about in regard to a leg injury.
Some starting pitchers can go deep and some need to get pulled early. Some NBA players can play big minutes, some can't.
Pro sports are littered with workhorses (Bron) & fragile stars (Kawhi) that need different use, approach, & care.
People can blame or not blame Joe. YMMV
Whatever is known is already known. Sometimes these teams take gamesmanship to another level. Nobody on the Heat sideline expects him to play in G4 or anytime this series….but I supposed just in case let’s keep them all guessing. Good lord respect the fan base one time please?
What does this mean internet AI doctor?
A right soleus strain is a tear or pull of the soleus muscle, which is located deep in the calf behind the gastrocnemius muscle. The soleus muscle helps you point your toes and stabilize your ankle when you walk and run.
Right soleus strains are relatively common, especially in runners and people who participate in activities that involve a lot of jumping or calf raises. They can be caused by sudden overuse, such as starting a new running program too quickly, or by tightness or weakness in the calf muscles.
Symptoms of a right soleus strain can include:
* Pain in the deep calf muscle, especially when standing on your toes or pushing off with your right foot
* Tenderness to the touch
* Bruising
* Swelling
* Weakness in the calf muscle
If you think you have a right soleus strain, it's important to rest the muscle and apply ice to the area to reduce inflammation. You should also see a doctor to get a proper diagnosis and treatment plan. Treatment for a right soleus strain typically involves rest, ice, compression, and elevation (RICE). In some cases, physical therapy may also be recommended.
The recovery time for a soleus strain depends on the severity of the tear. Here's a general guideline:
* Mild strain (microtears): 10 days to 3 weeks
* Moderate strain (partial tear): 4-8 weeks
* Severe strain (complete tear): 2-4 months
These are just estimates, and it's important to consult a healthcare professional for a specific recovery timeline based on your individual injury.
A right soleus strain is a tear or pull of the soleus muscle, which is located deep in the calf behind the gastrocnemius muscle. The soleus muscle helps you point your toes and stabilize your ankle when you walk and run.
Right soleus strains are relatively common, especially in runners and people who participate in activities that involve a lot of jumping or calf raises. They can be caused by sudden overuse, such as starting a new running program too quickly, or by tightness or weakness in the calf muscles.
Symptoms of a right soleus strain can include:
* Pain in the deep calf muscle, especially when standing on your toes or pushing off with your right foot
* Tenderness to the touch
* Bruising
* Swelling
* Weakness in the calf muscle
If you think you have a right soleus strain, it's important to rest the muscle and apply ice to the area to reduce inflammation. You should also see a doctor to get a proper diagnosis and treatment plan. Treatment for a right soleus strain typically involves rest, ice, compression, and elevation (RICE). In some cases, physical therapy may also be recommended.
The recovery time for a soleus strain depends on the severity of the tear. Here's a general guideline:
* Mild strain (microtears): 10 days to 3 weeks
* Moderate strain (partial tear): 4-8 weeks
* Severe strain (complete tear): 2-4 months
These are just estimates, and it's important to consult a healthcare professional for a specific recovery timeline based on your individual injury.
Same injury Giannis suffered. Obviously we don’t know the severity, or how he’ll respond to treatment/rest, but it seems doubtful we see him soon.
The NBA conference finals start anywhere from May 19-22, so seems realistic, pending further information about the severity of the injury, to assume we won’t see KP return to game action during any semifinals series, at a minimum.
The NBA conference finals start anywhere from May 19-22, so seems realistic, pending further information about the severity of the injury, to assume we won’t see KP return to game action during any semifinals series, at a minimum.