Kristaps Porzingis hasn’t even made it through his first training camp with the Warriors, but his future in Golden State is already being questioned.
Porzingis is out indefinitely with a health issue, adding another concern for a Warriors team preparing for the 2026-27 season.
“Kristaps Porzingis is out indefinitely to open training camp with a health issue, per Warriors. Another immediate blow to their depth,” ESPN’s Anthony V. Slater reported.
Warriors head coach Steve Kerr isn’t looking too far ahead with Porzingis and says the team’s focus remains on helping him return to the court.
“Honestly, I just look at it as day to day,” Kerr said Thursday. “And we’re supporting him in every way that we can, with our performance staff, our training staff, doctors, and hopefully things can improve quickly and we’ll get him back.”
However, Porzingis’ situation is already creating some speculation around the league about what Golden State could do if his health problems continue.
One Western Conference executive believes there’s a real possibility the Warriors could eventually move on from Porzingis before the trade deadline.
“I spoke with one rival West executive earlier this week who said that he wouldn’t be shocked if Porzingis was moved by the Warriors and he didn’t finish the season with them at the trade deadline,” according to ClutchPoints senior NBA reporter Brett Siegel. “He’s basically a $20 million contract spot. It’s what the Warriors had last year with Jonathan Kuminga, and they ultimately turned Kuminga into Porzingis.”
Porzingis’ contract could give Golden State another significant salary to work with if the front office decides changes are needed during the season.
For now, much could depend on exactly how serious his current health issue turns out to be.
“Could they do something similar with Porzingis’s contract over the first 3.5 months of the regular season? I think that we don’t really know the full extent and the full details of this health issue, but from the Warriors’ perspective, they do,” Siegel added. “If this is going to be something that lingers over the course of the first half of the regular season, you’re going to see them have to make a hard decision regarding Kristaps Porzingis.”
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