Will the Boston Celtics ditch oft-injured starting center Kristaps Porzingis to save some cash?
That's one of the questions hanging over the team after the Grousbeck family's controlling interest in the franchise was sold for a record $6.1 billion sum to an ownership group spearheaded by private equity investor Bill Chisholm.
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When he's right, Porzingis still has nights where his play lives up to the "Unicorn" designation 15-time All-Star power forward Kevin Durant bestowed upon him during his days as a New York Knicks All-Star.
One of those nights was Friday when Porzingis notched an efficient 27-point, 10-rebound, six-assist decimation against the lottery-bound Utah Jazz as part of a 121-99 waxing. It marked Boston's fourth consecutive win, improving the team's record for the 2024-25 regular season to 51-19.
Kristaps Porzingis against the Utah Jazz last night:
🦄 27 points (9-15 FG, 3-5 3PT)
🦄 10 rebounds
🦄 6 assists
All that in just 25 minutes of play ☘️ pic.twitter.com/qdr3dHkaH2
— Tomek Kordylewski (@Timi_093) March 22, 2025
There are two major downsides to Porzingis, at least from an ownership perspective:
Porzingis has been available for just 35 games this season so far. At most, he'll have played just 47 games by the end of the year. During the 2023-24 Celtics' championship season, he was healthy for a middling 57 regular season games, then got hurt early into the team's playoff run.
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Porzingis was only available for seven games across a 19-game postseason, with backup Al Horford essentially holding it down at center during the NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks.
Since 2017-18, Porzingis has only played more than 60 games exactly once, when he was healthy for 65 games with a lackluster Washington Wizards squad in 2022-23.
The oft-hurt 29-year-old inked a two-year, $60 million veteran contract extension with Boston upon arriving to the team from the Wizards in a summer 2023 trade. He'll be on an expiring $30.7 million contract next year.
For a Celtics club expected to owe an estimated $500 million in combined salary commitments and luxury tax obligations next year, under new ownership, the juice just might not be worth the squeeze when it comes to Porzingis.
Here is what new ownership would inherit for next season:
- 11 players under contract
- 2 picks in the top-32 pic.twitter.com/Z6xe8DtE3o
— Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) March 20, 2025
Zach Harper of The Athletic speculates that someone like Porzingis or Jrue Holiday could be on the chopping block once the new ownership group assumes control.
"It wouldn’t be shocking to see Kristaps Porzingis go soon, as he has one year left on his deal,” Harper writes.
As for Holiday, a trade of the six-time All-Defensive Team guard would also help Boston duck under the NBA's incredibly punitive second luxury tax apron and would give the team room to retain Horford or younger fellow reserve center Luke Kornet, who will both be free agents this summer.
It would be a shame for Boston to lose Porzingis, because when he's available, the team has been virtually unbeatable. But that hasn't happened nearly enough.
Across the 35 healthy contests he did suit up for this season, the 7-foot-2 big man is averaging a stellar 19.5 points on .486/.396/.817 shooting splits, 6.9 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.6 blocks and 0.8 steals a night.
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