Boston Celtics star Kristaps Porzingis suffered a gruesome injury during Game 2 of the NBA playoffs against the Orlando Magic Wednesday night.
With just under one minute remaining in the third quarter, the center’s head was cut open after he took a stray elbow to the head from Magic center Goga Bitazde.
Bitadze attempted to swat the ball out to one of his magic teammates, when his elbow slammed directly into Porzingis’s forehead.
Following the incident, the veteran went to the ground and was left with blood pouring from his forehead.
Trainers swiftly rushed to his aid, applying pressure to the gushing wound with a towel to stem the bleeding.
Porzingis eventually managed to get to his feet with the help of trainers and headed to the locker room with a towel draped over his head. Despite the blood dripping down his face, he remained in high spirits, hyping up the crowd as he retreated down the tunnel.
Celtics star Kristaps Porzingis suffered a gruesome injury during Game 2 of the NBA playoffs
He later returned to the court with a massive X-shaped bandaged plaster over his forehead
At the time of the incident Boston was leading 77-66 with 55 seconds left in the third quarter and the foul was called a Flagrant Foul Penalty 1.
The TNT broadcast crew speculated that Porzingis may need stitches but the Latvian later emerged from the locker room with a massive X-shaped bandage plastered across the center of his forehead instead.
As the 7-foot-3 star made his return to the court, the raucous crowd inside TD Garden went wild.
‘K-P, K-P,’ the Boston faithful chanted as Porzignis beamed at the warm reception before heading to take his two free throws,
He made one of them before checking back out of the game and returning to the locker room where he reportedly received five stitches, according to the TNT broadcast.
He returned with 7:15 remaining in the fourth quarter and Boston up 90-82. Porzingis had 20 points at the time of his exit.
The Celtics were already without Jayson Tatum, who had been ruled out of the matchup with a wrist injury.
The six-time All-Star missed the first playoff game of his career after sustaining a bone bruise in his shooting wrist after a heavy fall in the Celtics’ opening win over the Magic at the weekend.
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