Kristaps Porzingis is returning to the Warriors on a two-year, $40 million contract with a player option in the second season, a deal that brings him back at a sharply lower price than the money he has made in recent years. The agreement gives Golden State a veteran frontcourt piece while leaving room to keep working on the rest of its offseason plan.
That matters because Porzingis still produced when he was available. Last season, he played 32 games for the Hawks and Warriors and averaged 16.7 points, 5.2 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.2 blocks in 24.0 minutes per game, shooting.446/.338/.842. Golden State was 6.4 points per 100 possessions better with him on the floor, and he had been 7.8 points per 100 possessions better during his time with Atlanta.
The first-year salary works out to $20 million, with the second year set at the same figure unless the player option changes the path later. That is a meaningful step down from the $27 million to $36 million he had earned in each of the past seven seasons, but it is easier to understand when set against the availability concerns that have followed him. Porzingis turned 31 in August, played 42 games in one of the past two seasons and 32 in the other, and has dealt with POTS for the past season and a half.
Golden State acquired Porzingis in February in the trade that sent Jonathan Kuminga and Buddy Hield to Atlanta, and the new contract locks in a player whose impact has been clear when he is on the court. The problem has been how often that has happened. A smaller guarantee helps the Warriors reduce the risk while still betting on the stretches when Porzingis has been a difference-maker.
The deal also fits into a larger cap puzzle. The Warriors are reportedly pursuing Anthony Davis via trade and LeBron James via the full MLE, and Yossi Gozlan said it is still technically possible to land both. But he said that path would require trading Jimmy Butler and draft assets for Davis, dumping Moses Moody's salary and getting Draymond Green to re-sign on a new deal with an identical or lower cap hit to Porzingis.
Bobby Marks offered a narrower view of the math. If Golden State cannot clear Moody's salary, he said the team likely would not be able to use more than the taxpayer MLE, which projects to $6.1 million next season. He also said the full MLE is worth $15 million, but the Warriors would be hard-capped at the first tax apron if they use more than the taxpayer portion. That leaves the Porzingis contract as both an upgrade and a constraint: useful on its own, but part of a roster picture that is still being forced into tight corners.
