LOS ANGELES – Seconds before 7-foot-2 Kristaps Porzingis held up his new Golden State No. 7 jersey to the flashing cameras in downtown Los Angeles, the new Warrior tried his hand at comedy.
“Forty-eight minutes,” Porzingis laughed when asked how much he expected to play tonight.
An hour before tipping off against the Luka Doncic-less Lakers in Los Angeles on Saturday night, the Warriors released Porzingis, the only addition at the NBA trade deadline.
Golden State sent Jonathan Kuminga and Buddy Hield to the Atlanta Hawks for the oft-injured Porzingis, who has played in at least 60 games each of the past seven seasons. He suited up just 17 times this season while dealing with Postural Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS), other injuries and various ailments.
But despite his injury history, the player, coach Steve Kerr and general manager Mike Dunleavy all expressed confidence that Porzingis could contribute this season.
On the floor, Porzingis is averaging 17.1 points per game and is a career 36% 3-point shooter. Improved stats still paint him as an elite rim protector and high impact player.
“Obviously, we wouldn’t have traded if we didn’t think there was a chance he could be healthy and play a lot for us,” Kerr said.
Dunleavy acknowledged that Porzingis is unavailable — he’s expected to make his team debut after the All-Star break — while also taking a vague shot at the departed Kuminga.
“There are no guarantees and guarantees, but where he is right now and where he is, we feel good about it,” Dunleavy said. “On the other hand, in terms of the things we send, we send a player who is in a similar boat and is fighting to stay down.”
When asked about Kuminga specifically, Dunleavy simply wished the youngster the best in Atlanta.
While remaining tight-lipped when discussing the trade that took place, Dunleavy couldn’t help but raise his voice when asked about the team’s reported pursuit of Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Dunleavy is adamant that the team did not ask the Bucks about dealing Jimmy Butler or Draymond Green at the deadline, noting that the only time Green was discussed was when other teams inquired about the lifelong Warrior.
“The truth is, nothing was close and nothing was envisioned,” Dunleavy said. “Draymond hasn’t been shopped or talked about in deals. So it’s a little misleading, and we’re trying to pick up the pieces.”
On Green’s podcast, the Warriors player painted a different picture in an episode released about eight hours before Dunleavy spoke.
“We talked for a long time, and he said ‘Actually, in front of Giannis, we’ve talked about Giannis … if we’re going to make a deal for Giannis, you or Jimmy are going to have to be in the trade for it to work,'” Green recalled during the episode.
Although his player said otherwise, Dunleavy shut down the question of him including Green or Butler in the proposed Antetokounmpo package.
“You’re putting words in my mouth, okay, unbelievable thought,” Dunleavy said. “No, no, no we don’t do that, I’m not talking about going down the list, I’m talking about who is traded and who isn’t, we don’t do that.”
Dunleavy has been vocal about the Warriors’ dynamic in the current and offseason, when Porzingis’ contract is up and the Warriors still have all the draft picks.
“We have the equipment to make deals,” said Dunleavy. “I think the only way we wouldn’t be part of the mix is ​​if we were giving away assets, young players, all the things we need to get a quality player, and we still have all that,” Dunleavy said. “We don’t feel like we’ve lost a ton, so we still have that kind of fire to move forward and do more deals.”
The Warriors also still have open roster space, even after signing Pat Spencer to a standard contract in a two-way deal.
After Dunleavy finished taking questions, Porzingis beamed as he explained how he fit into Golden State’s roster. He played with Al Horford in Boston, and is a longtime fan of both Green and Steph Curry.
“Just looking at it from the outside, he’s not real, so to play next to someone like that, it’s going to be really good,” Porzingis said of Curry. “I think it raises everyone’s level, when you have someone like that in your team, a special player, it makes everyone great.”
Kerr and Dunleavy agreed with Porzingis when he said that he does not see that he will play for the first time for the Warriors until the All-Star break, which is when the Warriors expect Curry to return from the runner’s knee.
After that, the Warriors will find out if Porzingis can provide a post-break energy similar to the jolt Butler provided last year when he joined Golden State, which was 28-24 heading into Saturday’s game.
“I think it’s a great opportunity to turn over a new page,” Porzingis said.
