New York Knicks To Be Without Kristaps Porzingis vs Boston Celtics

The New York Knicks head into tonight’s game against the Boston Celtics banged up as Kristaps Porzingis and Lance Thomas are out, while Joakim Noah is very questionable.

The New York Knicks look like they will be very shorthanded in their front court tonight against the Boston Celtics. The reeling Knicks have been hit hard by the injury bug, as they will be without some key rotation players.

Leading that list is Kristaps Porzingis. Porzingis is dealing with Achilles soreness and will be out for tonight’s game according to the New York Post’s Marc Berman. This is the fourth game in a row that Porzingis will miss, and the seventh one this season for the Achilles.

Along with the update on Porzingis, Berman also reports that Ron Baker will remain in the starting lineup, with Courtney Lee staying on the bench.

With Porzingis out, a lineup shakeup was bound to happen. In his place, Jeff Hornacek is expected to turn to Mindaugas Kuzminskas again because Lance Thomas is out once again.

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Thomas had been starting in place of Porzingis, but he suffered an injury of his own Sunday against the Toronto Raptors. Thomas was inadvertently elbowed in the face by Raptors’ center Jonas Valanciunas, suffering an orbital fracture and concussion-like symptoms.

Thomas is being fitted for a mask for the fractured orbital bone and will need some time to adjust to the mask before getting on the court.

In addition to Porzingis and Thomas, the Knicks could be without starting center Joakim Noah. Noah, who has been dealing with a shoulder injury, missed shootaround this morning with a sore right ankle according to Newsday’s Al Iannazzone.

As a result, Noah is considered extremely questionable to suit up tonight. If he is unable to go, the Knicks will rely heavily on Kyle O’Quinn and Willy Hernangomez in the middle. We could also see Marshall Plumlee, who has been inactive most of the season but should be active if Noah is also out.

The Knicks, losers in 11 of their last 13 games, need to find a way to get back on track. These injuries will not help their cause, as they look like they will be without two starters and a key bench player against the Celtics.

While injuries are tough to deal with, the Knicks are taking the right approach. The Knicks cannot afford to lose these players for an extended period of time, so allowing them to get healthy now makes sense.

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Hornacek just has to hope that some of the players he plugs into their place steps up and performs with the opportunity being given to them.