Eastern Conference Finals injury update with Celtics’ Kristaps Porzingis ruled out, Pacers’ Tyrese Haliburton doubtful

The NBA Eastern Conference Finals have less than optimistic updates on injuries related to two basketball stars.

The injury updates concern Boston Celtics star Kristaps Porzingis, who is ruled out for Game 4 on Monday, and Indiana Pacers two-time NBA All-Star guard Tyrese Haliburton.

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The Celtics have a 3-0 series lead entering Game 4 with the Pacers on Monday.

But on Sunday, Boston announced that Porzingis will not play in the potentially series-deciding game due to a calf injury.

And the Pacers, in turn, listed Haliburton as questionable due to his left hamstring injury.

Porzingis, 28, has been sidelined since April 30, when he suffered a non-contact calf injury in the Celtics’ first-round series with the Miami Heat.

He has since missed the second round series against the Cleveland Cavaliers with a calf strain and was expected to miss only a handful of games in the ECF.

It was reported that Porzingis was targeting a Game 4 comeback as he has been “accelerating his growth on the court” recently.

He will have a chance to play in Game 5 if Boston doesn’t close out the series on Monday.

During the season, Porzingis averaged 20.1 points and 7.2 rebounds while shooting a career-high 51.6% from the field.

The Celtics continued to sign veteran Al Horford in his place.

Horford scored 23 points while shooting 7 of 12 from three in the team’s 114-113 Game 3 win on Saturday night.

As for the Pacers, they hope to see Haliburton play in Game 4.

The 24-year-old suffered a hamstring injury in Game 2 and was questioned in Game 3 before being ruled out.

Haliburton has the same questionable status for Game 4.

His hamstring injury dates back to January, when he slipped during a field goal attempt against Boston.

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During the season, Haliburton averaged a career-high 20.1 points and 10.9 assists and helped Indiana reach the conference finals.

The Pacers replaced him with Sheppard, who was held scoreless in Game 3.

Indiana received contributions from point guard TJ McConnell, who scored 23 points off the bench.

The Celtics were up 3-0 in the series after Jayson Tatum’s near triple double in Game 3.

Boston hopes to sweep the series and advance to the NBA Finals with a potential Game 4 win on Monday night in Indiana.

The NBA Finals won’t start until June 6th, as whoever wins the ECF series will face either the Dallas Mavericks or the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The Mavericks also have a 3-0 series lead with Game 4 on Tuesday in Dallas.