Kristaps Porzingis' Illness That Impacted Celtics Tenure Finally Revealed

Former Boston Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis missed a significant stretch of action during his final playoff run with the team before he was traded in the summer.

Porzingis revealed that the illness he experienced was postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), a condition that made running and activity difficult.

Throughout the regular season last year, he played normally, not showing any signs of being compromised. However, come the playoffs, he looked like a shell of himself.

More news: Celtics' Anfernee Simons Knows Exactly What He Needs to Improve This Year

According to Fred Katz of The Athletic, the doctors diagnosed Porzingis with POTS.

"Doctors later diagnosed him with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome, he said, more commonly referred to as POTS, an autonomic condition that can dramatically increase a patient’s heart rate when standing up instead of spread horizontal. Handled wrong — or not yet diagnosed — and POTS can lead to extreme exhaustion or dizziness," Katz wrote in a story.

More news: Multiple Celtics Free Agent Signings Disrespected in New Position Rankings

In the story, the center detailed how it made him feel and the symptoms that he battled throughout the playoffs.

“It hit me, and it hit me like a truck,” Porzingis told The Athletic. “The breathing wasn’t good. I did everything I could potentially to feel as good as I could, but my engine wasn’t running the way I wanted.”

“You know how people say, ‘Oh, I’m so fatigued.’ I’ve never used those words. I don’t even like to speak in those terms, but I really was like that. At that time, I could just lay on the couch and be a house cat.”

The Celtics ended up trading Porzingis at the end of the season due to salary cap restrictions. Boston was in the second apron, which puts an intense financial and transactional burden on the team. To get out of that spot, they needed to shed a significant amount of salary.

The 30-year-old, who had been a key big man providing size to the team, was on an expiring deal worth $30 million this season, and given the Celtics' lack of competitiveness with Jayson Tatum on the sidelines, it hardly makes sense to keep him.

He ended up being traded to the Atlanta Hawks, while the Celtics currently start Neemias Queta at center.

Latest Celtics News

For more news and notes on the Boston Celtics, visit Boston Celtics on SI.