Kristaps Porzingis is no longer being paid by the team that signed him to an extension over the summer. Golden State has halted the semimonthly installments on the 31-year-old center’s $20 million salary this season, taking the position that he is “not rendering services” after a prolonged absence tied to postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome, or POTS.
The reporting came first from ESPN’s Shams Charania and Anthony Slater, as relayed in detail by Yahoo Sports. Each missed game costs Porzingis $218,341, one 91.6th slice of his annual salary, according to Bobby Marks’ calculation for ESPN.
Porzingis has not been at the Warriors’ facilities since early October. According to TSN’s summary of The Stein Line’s Jake Fischer reporting, he met at that point with general manager Mike Dunleavy and the team’s medical lead Rick Celebrini. Golden State then publicly said he would return to the facility. He did not comply, and when he departed again the team quietly changed his official status from “general illness” to “not with team.”
Retirement is on the table
The 2024 NBA champion, who won the title with the Boston Celtics, played just 15 games for Golden State last season. His two-year, $40 million extension, signed over the summer, is almost entirely front-loaded: only $3 million of the second year is guaranteed, and the rest sits on a player option.
Read also: “I see what you see’: Lewis Hamilton questions Charles Leclerc’s aggression at Ferrari
Charania’s reporting, cited by Yahoo Sports, left little doubt about the direction.
“If there is no breakthrough in recovery, stepping away from basketball, for good, is possible.”
Porzingis has not disputed the missed paychecks, and the National Basketball Players Association is following his lead. The union “has no plan to dispute either” the withheld payments, TSN reported. The direction from his camp is instead toward a negotiated buyout, not a fight over the semimonthly checks.
Why the Warriors won’t void the deal
For Golden State, the practical calculus is a trade. The February 11 deadline is the lever: the team can move Porzingis’ contract to another franchise even while refusing to pay him, and his $20 million salary, attached to a potentially retiring player, is an attractive outbound piece for a team looking to shed a larger, unwanted contract. His cap hit stays on the Warriors’ books in the meantime, which means withholding his salary does not open room to sign a replacement center.
Read also: Jadon Sancho offered to Championship club after £73m Manchester United career collapse
NBA reporter Brett Siegel told Yahoo Sports that any team that trades for Porzingis “can immediately buy him out, essentially moving off a bigger, unwanted contract.”
Until the February 11 trade deadline, Porzingis remains on Golden State’s roster, unpaid and away from the facility.
Read also: Liverpool owners in talks over £2bn takeover of Cadillac Formula 1 team
