Celtics face brutal Kristaps Porzingis playoff truth that cursed him with Mavericks

It was four years ago when Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks stunned the LA Clippers in games one and two in the first round of the playoffs. That was the last of any playoff experience for Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis.

The Porzingis project in Dallas was mostly a failure, as he only played two and a half seasons with the Mavs. When he was 100 percent, he helped out a lot with his post presence and long-range shooting, but the problem was simple. He could never stay on the court.

The defending champion Boston Celtics have their backs against the wall, being down 2-0 against the New York Knicks following some laughable mishaps. Not being able to knock down threes is one thing, but not being able to hold 20-point leads in back-to-back games is another issue. Porzingis' recent play is at the forefront of those recent failures, and it's something Dallas fans know far too well.

Porzingis being out often is something Mavericks fans can't forget

It's been revealed that Porzingis is dealing with a mysterious illness, as he's been battling this for quite some time. Luckily for the Celtics, their head coach Joe Mazzulla knows exactly what he's dealing with, and they hope to get ahead of it in time for Game 3.

The fact is, Porzingis has played in just 27 minutes in the past two games, and it's unfair for reserve big man Luke Kornet to take over the challenge of defending Karl-Anthony Towns. The playoffs have exposed Porzingis, including in the Orlando Magic series, where it seemed he couldn't do much against smaller guys like Cory Joseph. He would either lose the ball or just miss routine shots against much smaller defenders.

This is exactly what Mavs fans don't miss about Porzingis. As it was revealed during his Mavs days that he wouldn't give full effort in certain situations, and his ego while playing next to Doncic was destructive. The Porzingis project was a massive failure, with him not even providing that much in key moments where it mattered most.

Of course, Mavs fans can't get too ahead of themselves, as they remember when Porzingis torched the Mavs immediately to start the NBA Finals last season. With Porzingis having a championship ring in Boston now, it only makes fans wonder what could've been with Doncic and Porzingis together for more time. Doncic erased any supposed drama between him and Porzingis last year.

There are reports of Boston rearranging their team in fear of not being able to keep all their guys for next season, and it only makes us wonder what Porzingis' role would be next season if they keep him around. He is extremely talented, but his unreliability is what makes him a wildcard.

Even though Porzingis is dealing with an uncontrollable illness that won't leave him alone, Celtics fans are seeing the same issues that destroyed his Mavericks journey. His injury history is no joke, and if you have Porzingis on the roster, be prepared for him to miss significant time.