It was vintage Kristaps Porzingis.
He was active. He was everywhere. He helped space the court for Steph Curry’s scoring flurries. He was in the trenches alongside Draymond Green on defense.
A few days before the Warriors were eliminated Friday from the play-in tournament, Porzingis had 20 points (8-for-12 shooting from the field, 3-for-6 from beyond the arc), five rebounds, five assists, one steal and two blocked shots in an elimination game against the Clippers on Wednesday,
He was everything the Warriors hoped he’d be when they acquired him from Atlanta for Jonathan Kuminga and Buddy Hield ahead of the Feb. 5 NBA trade deadline.
But that version of him came in spurts this season.
Porzingis only played in 15 of a possible 31 games with the Warriors because of health issues at leastpartially related to POTS. He hardly shared the court with Curry, who missed 27 straight games because of runner’s knee.
The 7-foot-2 centerwill become an unrestricted free agent this summer. The Warriors hope to re-sign him, though he’d have to take a significant salary cut from the two-year, $60 million extension he signed in Boston in 2023.
How does he feel about returning to Golden State?
“That’s a good question,” Porzingis told The California Post in an exclusive interview. “I do love my time here, honestly. Not one bad thing I can say about the organization, the team, the teammates. I really love it here, I really do.
“As I said before, I haven’t had a good year. If I had a good year, I think I’d have a more clear picture of what I want to do. Because I’ve had an up-and-down year like this, this is an offseason in my career that I think I’m just going to take a step back, look at the whole picture and then see what’s the best direction for me.”
Source: California Post – Breaking California News, Photos & Videos
