Warriors center Kristaps Porzingis will be sidelined for Sunday’s afternoon game against Denver due with what the team is calling a general illness, per Anthony Slater of ESPN (Twitter link).
As Slater notes, Porzingis was able to practice the past two days. The team had been planning to slightly increase the big man’s playing time after he logged 17 minutes in his Warriors debut on Thursday.
Head coach Steve Kerr told reporters on Sunday that he got a text this morning stating that Porzingis was ill and he won’t be at the arena (Twitter link via Nick Friedell of The Athletic). The 30-year-old’s status for Golden State’s upcoming two-game road trip is to be determined, Friedell adds.
Injuries and illnesses have been a major issue for Porzingis this season, as he has only played in 18 of a possible 56 games in 2025/26. The one-time All-Star has been productive when he’s been on the court, averaging 16.8 points, 4.9 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.3 steals in 23.9 minutes per game, but it’s safe to assume his lack of availability played a significant role in Atlanta’s willingness to trade him to Golden State.
Porzingis was diagnosed with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) after missing an extended stretch of time down the stretch and in the playoffs during the 2024/25 season. He expressed optimism this past fall about his ability to manage the condition going forward.
Porzingis, who is earning $30.7MM this season, will be an unrestricted free agent this summer if he doesn’t sign an extension before the start of the new league year.
Sounds about right for the warriors a new day and another play out.
General soreness and general illness on the same team?
Hahahahaha
Looks like the unicorn saw the opponent today and their all world center. He didn’t even call in sick.., he texted in sick lol.
Of course Kris Didn’t want to get destroyed by Jokić because he’s still looking for a fat contract for next year.
Can’t have the tape of this game floating around when he’s asking for $25 million per for 3 years !!
Wildly bad take. Warriors fans are so emotional.
Cam, If my humor sucks, then OK, but there’s only one Warriors fan on this website who’s “emotional.” Maybe two if you count the flamethrower from the other coast who comments on more warriors articles than most Golden State fans do.
He doesn’t even guard Jokic lol ……. Warriors fans don’t know their own players.
Maybe he should have said Green who guard the joker.
If you have seen Letterkenny, he got the Native flu!
He’s got POTS there will be days where he can barely stand up for the rest of his life. But I wouldn’t retire either if they kept paying me millions for nothing!
Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS) symptoms primarily include a rapid heart rate increase upon standing, often causing dizziness, lightheadedness, fainting, and severe fatigue. Other common, debilitating symptoms include brain fog, palpitations, chest pain, nausea, headaches, and shaky, cold, or purple-tinged hands/feet. Symptoms are triggered by standing, heat, or exercise, and can be managed with lifestyle changes.
Darn. Hd no idea he deals with that. He’s a good guy…wishing him the best.
Yep I’ve always liked him and what’s happened is unfortunate.
Tuna, I keep forgetting about that and admittedly my comment could appear harsh. I am simply using the news of the day to my advantage in throwing out a little ribbing of my own team.
All good Gary all good lol
What did I say? He will NEVER be healthy! Warriors fans get used to this! Enjoy 😉
Agree 100
*enjoyed that big win vs Joker today, sure!!!
yes!!! keep it coming!!!
Let the tanking begin
I would say that if the Warriors get trounced by 25+ at home you’d have to think about it.
If they compete and of course that could because the Nuggets play down to the competition, then I think they stay the course and go for it. A 15 point loss to the Nuggets doesn’t mean you call it a year. You keep working.
Draymond is a late scratch. Kinda already are tanking. Runners knee, old. Kristaps general illness. Not making fun of his condition. Draymond sore back.
Looking ahead to the schedule and resting guys in games you think you can’t win is becoming common practice. Is that tanking or load management?
Yeah, I’m not sure what it is. Like you say, they sit out games they don’t think they can win.
Let’s call it “tanking management” lol Not quite full on tanking, but still managing the “load” in their pants and hoping for a top 20 pick.
It has become obvious that the Warriors play better without Dray.
I don’t think it is alpha and omega, but he is negative on the plus minus this season:
link to statmuse.com
Bonkers that the FO really thought this was the best option
What was the other option?
Vucevic
Anyone without chronic illness maybe?
Imagine having Anthony Davis and Porzingis on the same team.
KP is worse than “streetclothes” …..
At least KP has a diagnosis lol
Yeah its IMissMoreGms ….
Yeah maybe you should read about it. Lol
Why ….. what he has is an NBA contract.
…He’s probably not going to play anymore after this season.
Goodbye …….. great move by Warriors. So you are saying today. Warriors gave up two players and a young potential starter. For a player who’s finished.
Well thats brilliant —— KP has 233 mill career earnings and full benefits. He’s okayed 60% of his games.
Warriors are testing out KP so if he proves his worth they resign him but a lesser rate.
@Al
GSW traded for KP due to his cap space. He has a $46M hit for next year – they can get other players instead. Very valuable addition honestly…
But we have to see who they sign. FA class next yr isn’t great. All I’m saying is you can’t trust him to play 45 gms. And Warriors need a big to play 70 gms minimum. You know it’s all about next year .
The medical hasn’t fully worked with him.
Right, but at this point, “anyone healthy” is better than an injury prone veteran. I expect them to go after guys who have clean injury records.
Harrison Barnes has long been a perfect fit, but he hates Kerr and will never play for him ever again.
You are the only one who thinks Harrison Barnes hates Steve Kerr. Where do you come up with this stuff? It is really bizarre.
He doesn’t have a 46m cap hit next years he’s a free agent. His contract expires this season.
link to spotrac.com
Oh ok I see what you meant. It’s a cap hold for a possible sign and trade. I doubt anyone will pay him close to 46m annually though that would be crazy.
Thanks for clarifying
GSW were never playing Kuminga and Buddy, so KP playing 1 game is enough on that end, but the real reason was this cap space in a snt
That makes sense
Hey Tuna, here’s another take about KP, it’s a lot better of a written explanation then anything written in these threads about it:
“The Warriors could not only sign-and-trade Porzingis this summer, they would be able to sign-and-trade him and aggregate his salary in a bigger trade.
Porzingis is on a $30 million expiring deal, which makes him an interesting piece.
In the last two months of his contract, Porzingis is incentivized to show he can stay on the court and return to being a productive player.
He has only played 17 games this season (though his advanced metrics were excellent in that sample with the Hawks). He deteriorated in the second half of last year as he dealt with an illness, which was ultimately diagnosed as POTS. Lower-leg injuries have also sidelined him. But he was recently cleared to play, and could debut for the Warriors before the All-Star break.
If Porzingis can make himself available, he should fit well with the Warriors, who have long sought a center who can space the floor and protect the rim next to Green. It’s possible that the Warriors could look to re-sign him — at a much lower annual cost — in that case.
Or, the Warriors could look to sign-and-trade him in the offseason as part of a bigger deal. Without Kuminga, they lack the type of meaty, mid-sized salaries required for matching salaries to complete big trades. In this route, the Warriors would be able to aggregate his sign-and-trade salary, too.
The other option would be for the Warriors to let Porzingis walk, shaving $30 million off their books. That wouldn’t make them a cap space team, but it would likely get them out of the luxury tax.
The biggest advantage of getting out of the tax could be gaining the opportunity to sign a player like De’Anthony Melton to the non-taxpayer midlevel exception. Melton has been terrific this season, so he’ll likely decline his $3 million player option for 2026-27.”
link to sfstandard.com
They gave up two players who weren’t contributing and another with an iffy path forward. KP has talent. The full medical staff hasn’t with him yet. There is a path forward.
Dude he has a condition that makes him unable to move on random days. There has never been less of a path forward.
Umm…Other athletes have the same syndrome and are able to perform at a high level. Why can’t Porzingis.
Nobody is saying he can’t but it doesn’t look like he’s ever going to be the same.
I certainly hope he can bounce back and play every game. But not everyone handles an illness the same way.
@Giants74
Any other male athletes?
There was a hockey player…. but yeah Besides Ledecky… most end up retiring due to symptoms.
Another thing is none of the other athletes are 7’5″…its a nerve and heart issue and buddy is YUGE.
He can’t even play 2 games in a row at home, the 2nd with 2 days off.
Sad!
That’s the best they could get for Kuminga!? Seems like two seconds would have been better than a never healthy expiring contract.
Yes, you’re absolutely right but as with the Kevin Durant and D’Angelo Russell deal, you try to keep that $30 billion spot on your roster for future transactions.
And even more of a reason is simply that Atlanta can’t bring in JK’s $23 million without sending $23 million back out.
Here’s another thought, getting two seconds doesn’t help one iota in Curry’s final 5th ring attempts.
At least with the unicorn there’s a sliver of hope he plays and an even smaller sliver that he plays well.
Steph has just a year or two maybe max three left and you take that chance a guy can tap into the fountain of youth and make a run.
At least that’s the way I think they look at it.
It’s only two more years so they go for it the best way possible and if unicorn can make it happen then it was worth the gamble.
Besides, I don’t think there was anyone else out there besides a second round pick or two. Seriously this was the only player available, unless you count Malik Monk and his unwanted contract.
This season is toast. So it is one more year with Steph, Dray, Jimmy, and zero more seasons with KP under his current contract. You are probably correct that KP was the only player out there because JK’s value had completely cratered.
As I keep saying, they should not resign KP. He will eat up cap and will not contribute commensurate with his salary.
The best ability is availability. I don’t actually believe that, but there is some truth in the saying.
JBS, all great points.
I guess playing two games in a row was asking a little too much from Zinger!
OK, Warriors up 9 at the half. That’s a great sign !! They have some fight in them and they’re not giving up.
It means the Warriors will lose by 15 and not the aforementioned 25.
So it’s full steam ahead to try and get a good playoff seeding and perhaps make some noise once they get there !!
You knew the refs would help nuggets in the second half by calling the ticky tack fouls but not on nuggets
The refs?
There’s a difference between a playoff tested veteran team reaching and swatting at the ball and causing havoc.., and a young, inexperienced squad hacking away after a guy secures a rebound.
A starting lineup of bench role players against a title contender.
This is injuries. If the Warriors were at full strength they’d run with them. The problem is the roster as currently constructed has a very low probability of actually being healthy for any meaningful period of time. And they just added the most in injured guy in the league to the mix! It’s not a plan it’s a prayer.
Again, you’re spot on, but I’ll throw this out there because Moses Moody sucks.
Unicorn is the 4th most injured guy in the league.
You’re forgetting two guys on the Sixers, and a certain $60 million player currently on the wizards.
@JBS
That title contender was playing their 3rd road game in 4 days, which is why the upset happened.
The refs?
If anything, the league wants Curry in the playoffs. The league wants that storyline to continue this year. If anything, the refs would try to help Golden State in this game.
Have you seen the number of comments on warriors articles versus Denver Nuggets articles.., or any other team’s articles? And that’s just this website right here.
Not the league but Vegas. So much sport betting now it’s impossible to keep refs honest with all the money and bets.
It’s a good thing I don’t gamble. I would’ve lost the farm and all the tractors today.
It was weird how in the third they called a lot of fouls but not in the first half. Denver just ran out of gas in the 4th.
Wait until you see the treatment Boston get tonight @ lakers. Luka, Reaves, Bron all playing on a night L.A unveil Pat Riley statue. 20-30 free throw discrepancy incoming.
Funny thing is every player on Lakers now flop not just LeBron. LeBron barely fouled and he drops to the ground.
@ARC
Did you see them call the Clippers rookie for a flagrant 1 stating he threw a “rekcless elbow”?
LeBron dove to the floor like he’d been shot!
I saw that play it was a slight elbow but LeBron acted light it was a wind up. Luka does the same barely touched but exaggerating a touch.
Fouls calls were dead even last night for Bos LA. Though I do agree the refs are shady asf.
And lakers got spanked, what a surprise. Rely heavily on a laker whistle.
The refs have held a grudge against GSW since they called them out in the 2016 Finals.
The refs never help the Warriors.
Refs hold grudges when coaches call them out. I seen teams like Pistons and Rockets. There is also the hometown calls that teams get.
To be fair Gary, the abundance of comments on Warriors pieces usually have a lot less to do with the Warriors than they do with the delusional few who still think it’s 2017.
Haha, right !!
Or even 2022.
It will be interesting to see if they try to make the playoffs by winning the play in (which would almost surely mean facing OKC or the Spurs in the 1st rd), or more wisely lose for a chance at a lottery pick.
That’s because 90% of the people on here think this is a fan site. They get confused. Then they get all butt-hurt.
Wow.
No Green on the floor and they play better.
Rigged
TV and sponsors need Warriors to be relevant and playoff bound. They still hve many natiional tv games
They played a team that got tired in the 4th. For once it wasn’t the warriors running out of gas.
I’m
Confused are they rigging for or against GSW
Has to be one right
My lord just appreciate the game and leave the silly narratives at the door
It’s not rigged, it was just a trap game for the Nuggets, 1230pm away game vs a team missing its best 4 players lol
@Michol the Nuggets had 29 FTA to 12 = not rigged. If anything it was rigged for the Nuggets to win.
I wasnt just talking about 1 game. There were like a dozen games or so this season. And I’m not talking about the referees…
NBA is weird nowadays. Look at Detroit. How do you go from a hopeless worst team to one of the better teams so quick? Nobody is that good anymore and nba can easily somewhat create a good team or player at their will it seems….
Detroit has 1 reason why they are great: Cade. He is a HOFer.
Every last one of you who have besmirched the Warriors recently is wrong and does not know ball. Let me educate you:
As a unit – Moody, Richard, Horford, Santos, Melton, Podz and GP2 are massively UNDERRATED. Repeat this to yourself until you get it.
Now you know ball.
link to hoopsrumors.com
Please bottle your tears when the season ends. I’ll pay well. Certainly better than Starbucks.
His flip-flopping is funny – it’s been less than a week since he last trashed Podz and GP2.
Podz shot 1-10 in the 1st 3 Qs last night – obviously if he hadn’t got hot in the 4th we’d have been hearing about how worthless he is.
Lmfao