Kristaps Porzingis Discusses Diagnosis of POTS After Illness, 'It Hit Me Like A Truck'

Kristaps Porziņģis was diagnosed with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) after the 2024-25 season, and the star player acknowledged that it significantly impacted his play for the Boston Celtics during the playoffs.

"It hit me, and it hit me like a truck," he told Fred Katz of 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."

According to the Mayo Clinic, POTS "affects the autonomic nervous system, which controls involuntary body functions such as heart rate and blood pressure. In postural tachycardia syndrome, the nerves that regulate blood flow are out of balance, so enough blood doesn't go to the right place at the right time. The result is a variety of symptoms, including an overly rapid heartbeat when shifting from lying down to standing up."

Other symptoms include chronic fatigue, headaches, nausea and cramping. Porziņģis told Katz his heart rate would rise to as much as 130 beats per minute when he stood up.

"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," he added. "At that time, I could just lay on the couch and be a house cat."

Porziņģis is now on a high-salt diet and has changed his rest schedule off the court to combat the condition. He's heading into his first season with the Atlanta Hawks, a team with high expectations after a busy offseason. A newly-energized Porziņģis should be a fun pick-and-pop partner with point guard Trae Young, with a slew of talented wings surrounding them.

"We are an aspiring team, a young team that aspires to win a championship one day, and that's the cool part," Porziņģis told Katz. "Even by the betting odds, we're not too far off."