Kristaps Porzingis was clearly not 100% in his return to the court, which came just in time for the Celtics to win an NBA championship.

But just how bad was his “rare” injury?

“It pretty much hurts on every step,” Porzingis said after the title-clinching Game 5 win. “Like, I would take a walk in Dallas, and my leg would swell up.”

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Porzingis’ torn medial retinaculum, which allowed a dislocation of the posterior tibialis tendon, will require surgery, he told ESPN’s Tim Bontemps on Monday night. The recovery process will take a “few months.”

Head coach Joe Mazzulla said it was a “huge credit” to Porzingis to play through the leg ailment.

“I know he’s been in and out in the playoffs, but he’s worked his ass off to try and get in and play as much as he could,” Mazzulla said.

“It just says — about the team, everyone is going to do whatever it takes to win. And even though he wasn’t 100%, he said he wanted to play, and he knew he could give us something. And I thought that the minutes he gave us were valuable. It speaks to who he is, and it speaks to the locker room.”

The Mavericks took four straight open threes, and hit two of them, with Porzingis on defense when he entered the game with 6:49 left in the first quarter to a thunderous ovation from the crowd at TD Garden.

Porzingis clearly wasn’t moving like his usual self and was having difficulty switching on defense.

Still, he wanted to be on the court with his teammates, and he looked more comfortable as the game wore on.

“Tonight was the night. I was like, listen, I’m going to give it everything I have,” Porzingis said. “And, yeah, I’m just super happy to be a part of this and give something to the team, and I’m super thankful for the support I’ve gotten from the fans. And tonight the arena was electric. It’s been unbelievable playing in front of these fans.”

The 7-foot-4 center played 16 minutes and shot 2-of-4 with five points, one rebound and two fouls. The Celtics were +8 when he was on the court.

“He’s just a great teammate, a great competitor. I was happy for him that he was able to go out there,” point guard Derrick White said. “The crowd cheering him on like that just got him going. He’s still 7-4 and can do so many different things here. He’s special.”