Kristaps Porzingis has suited up for just 13 games with the Hawks after being acquired in an offseason trade with the Celtics due to injury and illness. Now, his future in Atlanta remains a bit of a question mark following a report from NBA insider Marc Stein.
Stein reports on Substack that “any significant trade business that Atlanta does in-season is expected to include the $30.7 million expiring contract held by Kristaps Porziņģis.”
The Hawks announced on Dec. 14 that Porzingis would miss at least the next two weeks as he continues to deal with an illness that has sidelined him for seven of Atlanta’s eight games. The team said in a statement, “To ensure he continues to make progress toward a full recovery, he will continue this period of limited basketball activities and evaluation for two weeks, after which time his status will be updated.”
Porzingis had moved into a bench role in his last appearance on Dec. 5, the first time he hasn’t started in a regular season game since 2017. He scored 25 points in 20 minutes in the loss to the Nuggets. After the game, he addressed his health status and whether it relates to what he dealt with last season in Boston..
“I wouldn’t say it’s the same thing,” Porzingis said of the illness. “Just wasn’t feeling too good, honestly. Just not being healthy, but I wouldn’t say it’s the same stuff from last season. That’s good.
“I think I kind of put that behind me even this summer playing for the national team. Anyway, just catching whatever, it’s frustrating. I want to be healthy. I want to be healthy and I will be healthy.”
The Hawks currently sit with a 15-12 record in the Eastern Conference and have plenty of intriguing assets on their roster in terms of young players and future draft picks. If Atlanta were to target a bigger name on the trade market, the salary of Porzingis would come in handy as a tool to match money in a blockbuster deal.
The Hawks sent a future first round pick and Terance Mann last June to Brooklyn in a three-team trade with Boston and the Nets to acquire Porzingis.
The Celtics will play against their former teammate for the first time this year on January 17 in Atlanta.