According to Shams Charania, the Hawks are going to shutdown Kristaps Porzingis for the next two weeks with an illness and then re-evaluate things in an attempt to prioritize his long-term health this season.
“Atlanta Hawks C/F Kristaps Porzingis (illness) will miss the next two weeks and undergo further evaluations, sources tell ESPN,” Charania reported on Twitter/X. “Both sides are prioritizing the long term of the season for Porzingis, who has missed seven of the last eight games.”
Charania also noted this is an issue he was dealing with at the end of last season with the Celtics.
“Porzingis was diagnosed with the autonomic condition, postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), last season in Boston. He and doctors found solutions over the summer to manage his health and he entered the Hawks season in good condition — before recent bout of illness.”
Porzingis was the Hawks’ single biggest acquisition of the offseason, and when he’s been on the floor, he’s been highly effective. He’s averaging nearly 20 points on 49.7% shooting from the field and 36.4% from three, to go along with 5.6 rebounds, 3.1 assists, and 1.6 blocks.
However, missed time is nothing new for Porzingis, and the Hawks were well aware of his injury history before making the trade. He’s played more than 57 games just once since the 2017–2018 season, and as Shams Charania noted, he was dealing with this same condition at the end of last year. It was essentially a foregone conclusion that he would only play about half the games this season. From the start, the goal has been to manage his workload and get him to the postseason as healthy as possible.
Now, though, it’s becoming increasingly likely Porzingis doesn’t even make it that far in Atlanta. The Hawks have been mentioned as potential suitors for both Giannis Antetokounmpo and Anthony Davis, and for either of those trades to materialize, Porzingis would almost certainly have to be included.
That’s going to be the case for many of the Hawks’ potential trade targets. While Porzingis’ health is a concern for any acquiring team, his $31 million expiring contract is still extremely attractive for franchises looking to clean up their cap sheet moving forward. That combination makes him one of the more likely Hawks to be moved ahead of the trade deadline.
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Photo: Melissa Tamez/Icon Sportswire
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