Kristaps Porzingis Opens Up About Illness Sidelining Him During NBA Playoffs

He said it "kills me inside" that it's happening now.

Kristaps Porzingis on May 7, 2025. / Knicks Videos / X / Screenshot

We still don't know what exact illness Kristaps Porzingis is fighting, but we do know a bit more about the whole ordeal after the Boston Celtics center opened up to reporters following the Celtics' Game 2 loss to the New York Knicks.

Porzingis did not play in the second half of Monday's Game 1 and then played just 14 minutes off the bench on Wednesday, scoring eight points.

"I'm just not feeling my best," he said after the fact. "I'm not feeling my best at all. It just kills me inside that it's happening in this moment. What I'm super appreciative about is the support that I have on the inside and also probably from the fans, but especially here, inside the organization.

"It's a tough moment for me, to not be able to be with the guys. ... And it's tough for me, honestly, but who cares? Nobody feels sorry for us, sorry for me, and we have to keep going."

Watch that full response below:

Kristaps Porzingis says he's "not feeling (his) best" as he deals with an illness:

"It just kills me inside that it's happening in this moment." pic.twitter.com/bDSYwrw3n1

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) May 8, 2025

According to head coach Joe Mazzulla, whatever Porzingis is dealing with is connected to the mystery illness that sidelined him for eight games during the regular season.

At this point, it seems pretty imperative that the club get to the bottom of whatever's going on. The Celtics are down 2-0 in the series, meaning they could use all the help they can get to right this ship. That said, the team is 31-9 without Porzingis this season, per StatMuse, so perhaps they could still pull it off without him.

We'll see what happens come Game 3, scheduled for Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET.

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