Kristaps Porzingis' calf injury isn't believed to be serious, but it's still significant enough to keep him sidelined for the Boston Celtics' quarterfinal game of the In-Season Tournament.
The Celtics announced Sunday they've ruled Porzingis out of Monday's game against the Indiana Pacers due to the left calf strain he suffered on Nov. 24 against the Orlando Magic.
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Porzingis sounded encouraged earlier in the week after an MRI revealed a low-level strain in his calf, but it appears Boston is still taking a cautious approach with its big man, who has missed the last three games. The Celtics will be off until at least Thursday after Monday's game, so Porzingis will get a few more extra days of recovery.
Boston advanced to the In-Season Tournament quarterfinals after storming back to win Group C on Tuesday. If the Celtics beat the Pacers on Monday in Indiana, they'll fly to Las Vegas to face the winner of the Milwaukee Bucks and New York Knicks in the IST semifinals on Thursday night. If the C's lose, they'll face the loser of Bucks-Knicks in a regular-season game Friday, with location TBD.
UPDATE (Dec. 4): There's "increasing confidence" that Porzingis will be back in the lineup Thursday if the Celtics advance to the IST semifinals, per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
Porzingis traveled with the Celtics to Indiana on Sunday, so the hope would be that he could return to action later this week -- and potentially help his team win the first-ever NBA Cup if it can take care of business Monday night.
Tip-off for Celtics-Pacers is set for 7:30 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Boston.
