The Warriors are reportedly looking to trade center Kristaps Porzingis.
Porzingis is out indefinitely with an undisclosed health issue that has kept him sidelined for several months now. The big man’s absence and future with the team was discussed by Warriors star Draymond Green on his podcast.
“I wouldn’t necessarily say the news was a distraction yesterday more so than like you kind of have forgot about it. We’ve gone a whole training camp and preseason without him, so you’ve kind of just got accustomed to the guys who were there and then that news comes out and it just makes you think about it again. I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s the biggest distraction, but it does suck,” Draymond said on the Porzingis situation.
“I saw Shams reported that the Warriors would be looking at a trade. Shams knows better than we do, so we’ll see what happens. I still wish him well. I hope he’s healthy. I hope he can get himself to a space health-wise that he feels great about, whether he plays basketball or not, it’s not my concern. I just always want people in good health. Having bad health sucks.”
Losing Porzingis is a major setback for the Warriors as he is their only player standing above 7-foot and his ability to stretch the floor, grab boards and be an intimidating presence on defense will be missed by Golden State.
The Warriors signed Porzingis to a two-year, $40 million extension in the offseason, but were aware of his ongoing health issues. Now, it appears there’s a chance Porzingis could end his basketball career over a mysterious illness that has prevented him from returning to the hardwood.
