The Golden State Warriors are reportedly refusing to pay their absent big man.
The Warriors are not delivering payments to Kristaps Porzingis on his $20 million salary, ruling that he is not rendering services, ESPN's Shams Charania and Anthony Slater reported on Wednesday.
Golden State is permitted to move his contract at any point before the Feb. 11 trade deadline, even without paying him currently, and will continue exhausting trade avenues as the 31-year-old leans toward ending his NBA career, Charania added.
After veteran centre missed training camp and the Warriors' first five pre-season games due to an undisclosed "health-related matter," the team released an update.
Porzingis "returned to the Golden State's practice facility and met with GM Mike Dunleavy and VP of player health and performance Rick Celebrini. The contents of that meeting will remain private. Porzingis will remain out indefinitely due to the same health-related matter but will be around the team," the Warriors said in a statement on Oct. 14.
However, the Warriors announced one week later that Porzingis isn't going to be with the team for “the immediate future.”
This came one day after Charania first reported that the Warriors had started to explore trade routes for Porzingis.
When asked ahead of the Warriors' season opener on the road against the Lakers what had changed, coach Steve Kerr didn't provide details.
“I don't know,” he said. “I don't really have anything to add on this. I haven't seen him and we've stayed in touch via text and a phone call. But we put out the statement today and there's not much more to it. We don't really know.”
Porzingis previously revealed he was diagnosed with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) during his time with the Boston Celtics, although the Warriors have not confirmed if Porzingis's current absence is related.
Porzingis himself also spoke publicly on the matter, taking to social media to address his status.
"Hello people, I'm working with doctors and experts to figure out how to be fully back to good health ASAP. Honestly, I'm getting better and better. I just have to stay patient, and I believe I'll be feeling great again soon. It has definitely been frustrating dealing with some health stuff that you can't exactly pinpoint, on top of injuries throughout my career, so it has added up for sure, but we will get through it. Health is wealth. Thank you for all the support."
He made 15 appearances for Golden State last season, averaging 16.7 points, 5.2 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.2 blocks. The Warriors then signed the Latvian seven-footer to a two-year, $40 million deal this past summer.
Injuries have been an ongoing concern for Porzingis throughout his career, having played fewer than 50 games in five of his first 10 NBA seasons, including missing all of 2018-19 while recovering from a torn ACL.
—With files from The Associated Press
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