Celtics' Kristaps Porziņģis Available for NBA Finals Game 5 vs. Mavs Amid Leg Injury

The Boston Celtics could see the return of one of their top players in Monday's Game 5 of the NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks.

The team announced that star center Kristaps Porziņģis is available after a leg injury kept him out of the previous two games.

"He's available. Expecting to see him tonight," Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla told reporters.

The coach added that Porziņģis won't be on a minutes restriction:

The return of Porziņģis boosts Boston's chances to close out the series on its home floor on Monday, as the team holds a 3-1 series lead over Dallas. The Celtics won Game 3 without Porziņģis in the lineup but suffered a 38-point blowout loss in Friday's Game 4 that extended the series.

Porziņģis was also listed as available in Game 4, but he didn't see any time on the floor. Mazzulla said after the loss that the 28-year-old was "not quite ready" to return to action while recovering from the torn medial retinaculum allowing dislocation of the posterior tibialis tendon in his left leg that he suffered in Game 2.

Prior to his injury, Porziņģis was performing at a high level in the NBA Finals. He dropped 20 points in Game 1 and had 12 points before exiting in Game 2, shooting a combined 60 percent from the field. It was an impressive return to form after a calf injury kept him sidelined since Game 4 of Boston's first-round series against the Miami Heat.

The Celtics are certainly hoping that Porziņģis will continue producing when he takes the floor on Monday. Boston is seeking its 18th championship in franchise history and will be motivated to not allow Dallas to force a Game 6.