The Celtics announced on July 25 that Kristaps Porzingis would undergo surgery to repair the rare leg injury he suffered during the NBA Finals.

Exactly five months later, he’s back.

Porzingis will make his season debut Monday night against the Los Angeles Clippers at TD Garden, according to a report from ESPN’s Shams Charania.

The 7-foot-2 center made steady progress in his rehab since the summer, recently drawing positive reviews from head coach Joe Mazzulla and his Boston teammates. Still, his pre-Thanksgiving debut comes as a surprise, as reports suggested he was unlikely to return until December at the earliest.

Getting Porzingis back will provide a massive boost to a Celtics team that was off to a 14-3 start without him. Boston entered the week ranked second in the Eastern Conference behind the 17-1 Cleveland Cavaliers but has struggled in a few key areas, most notably rim protection.

Porzingis’ unique blend of shot-blocking and 3-point shooting ability should help the Celtics shore up that weakness while giving them yet another offensive threat.

This is a developing story and will be updated.