Porziņģis Steps Away From Basketball to Focus on Health

Kristaps Porziņģis has stepped away from basketball. The Golden State Warriors big man announced the decision on Friday, saying his body is not responding as he hoped and he is not at the level he expects from himself.

Why his body said no

In his statement, Porziņģis said he was looking forward to playing with this group but his body did not respond as he anticipated while he ramped up. He wrote that he has "made the decision to prioritize my health and step away from the game I love." He added that he wants to show the utmost respect for the Warriors and work with them on a solution that makes sense.

Nobody has said when he might return, or whether he will. He has not appeared in a game for Golden State this season, and reports earlier this week said the club is holding back his pay.

A short contract with little guaranteed

He signed a two-year, $40 million deal with Golden State in free agency this summer. The second year carries only a $3 million guarantee. He has been away from the team since late September.

The Warriors have reportedly been trying to trade him in order to use his $20 million cap figure. CBS Sports' Sam Quinn wrote that Porziņģis would carry little trade value as a player because of his health. Still, his deal is close to expiring, with only $3 million guaranteed for next season. A team wanting to shed longer-term money could find that useful, or the Warriors could attach draft picks and use him as matching salary.

A career shaped by health problems

Since being drafted fourth overall by the New York Knicks in 2015, Porziņģis has played more than 57 games in a season just three times. He has had major injuries, among them a torn ACL that ended his 2018-19 season.

In recent years he has been limited by an unexplained illness that began to affect him in Boston in the 2024-25 season. He developed extreme fatigue and previously disclosed a diagnosis of postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome, or POTS. POTS makes the heart rate jump when a person stands, and it can leave them exhausted and dizzy.

Ahead of last season he said he does not like to talk in terms of being fatigued, but that he really was, to the point of being able to lie on the couch like a house cat. Across his last three seasons, split between the Celtics, the Hawks and the Warriors, he has appeared in only 74 games.

In mid-October he released an earlier statement saying he was working with doctors and experts to get back to full health. At that point the Warriors said he would be out indefinitely.

How Golden State is coping

The Warriors had hoped Porziņģis would play a big role as a floor-spacing big man, with Jimmy Butler (torn ACL) and Moses Moody (torn patellar tendon) sidelined. The report says it now seems more likely he will never play for the franchise again.

The team is 6-3 and sits seventh in a crowded Western Conference. Rookie big man Yaxel Lendeborg has stepped up in his place. Through nine games he is averaging 21 points, 7.1 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.1 steals, shooting 49.2% from the field and 39.6% from three.

Source: CBS Sports