Celtics player, who missed the FIBA World Cup due to injury, is optimistic about his health.

Kristaps Porzingis, a new big man for the Celtics, expressed his excitement about joining a club that has a chance to win a championship in an interview with Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston (video link). In his eight NBA seasons, Porzingis has only twice made the playoffs, and both times his team was eliminated in the first round. In order for the deal that sent him from Washington to Boston to go through, he had to activate his option for the next season, and he is confident that he made the right decision.

When it comes to trying to win it all, Porzingis said, “I feel like this is what I really wanted at this point in my career, especially while wearing these colors and this organization, which is, as I keep saying, if not the most iconic franchise out there, then certainly among the top two most iconic franchises.” And I’m a member of this squad. Thus, it is quite amazing. It’s been a fantastic experience for me, and I’m simply thankful for everything.”

When he first joined the NBA, Porzingis seemed destined for success, but injuries have slowed him back ever since. His participation in 65 games for the Wizards last season was his greatest number since 2016/17, but last summer’s absence of Porzingis from the World Cup due to plantar fasciitis raised additional health concerns. He claimed that his foot is now fine and gave the team doctors credit for assisting him in pain management.

“The medical staff did an incredible job of loading slowly,” stated Porzingis. “I was eager to play pick-up the first day as soon as I arrived here. But they somewhat restrained me. I paid attention to what they had to say, and everything has been running smoothly in preparation for training camp.

More from Boston is as follows:

• According to Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe, Derrick White and Jrue Holiday may constitute the league’s finest defensive backcourt. He notes that last season, White improved the Celtics’ defense by 4.5 points for every 100 possessions, while Holiday improved Milwaukee’s defense by 4.1 points for every 100 possessions whenever he played. Having pleasure playing with White, Holiday said. “I believe there is chemistry. Even just asking him about certain things during the first few days of training camp or discussing his preferred defensive strategies can be helpful. But being on the court and being able to play with him a little more has been beneficial for us.
• According to Souichi Terada of MassLive, coach Joe Mazzulla is delighted to have Jeff Van Gundy working with the team as a consultant. In his brief tenure with the company, Van Gundy has already shown to be helpful, according to Mazzulla, who plans to consult him on coaching-related matters all season long.
• Even if Neemias Queta has a strong start to the season, the Celtics will probably keep him on a two-way contract for a long, according to MassLive’s Brian Robb. Queta’s two-way contract allows for up to 50 games of participation, with the option for the side to later convert it to a conventional contract.