The Golden State Warriors and veteran center Kristaps Porziņģis are in a pickle. With the 31-year-old big man still reportedly dealing with POTS (postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome), an autoimmune condition, there are growing questions about his future both with the Warriors and as an NBA player.
On Wednesday, as the Warriors visit the Los Angeles Lakers in the evening, we finally received more (much-needed) clarity on a bizarre situation between organization and player. It's also not the best news for a Warriors team still ostensibly trying to contend with the legendary Steph Curry.
But what else is new on that front?
Per ESPN's Shams Charania, the Warriors have begun exploring trade options for Porziņģis, who is also apparently considering a possible retirement from the NBA given that he has no definitive return timeline to the court in sight. Woof. What a turn of events for the Warriors and for Porziņģis, who has been a staple of NBA basketball since he entered the league during the 2015-2016 season.
Golden State has started exploring trade routes for Kristaps Porzingis, who is now seriously contemplating his future in basketball as he deals with recurring symptoms from the autoimmune condition termed as POTS (postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome), sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/w9fb2Tk4kb
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 21, 2026
You're probably asking yourself another important question about this situation right now. How would the Warriors even be able to trade Porziņģis since he might retire? Who would actually trade for a player who likely and ultimately won't play?
That doesn't make much sense at face value, but I can explain.
Technically speaking, Porziņģis is on an expiring contract with a player option for the summer of 2027. Any prospective team dealing for him now would be doing so to expressly create around $20 million in salary cap space, either by letting his deal expire and/or by offloading expensive players of their own.
Porzingis is on a trade-flexible contract for $20 million this season and a small partial next year, serving as essentially an expiring deal that the Warriors can utilize, potentially with their pool of assets. He first revealed his POTS diagnosis last year and has had ups and… https://t.co/ykhLn1rzuc
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 21, 2026
What a weird situation in Golden State that might have a resolution for one of the NBA's most notable big men over the last decade-plus. I suppose we'll see how it shakes out for Porziņģis, whether he retires, and whether the Warriors are actually able to trade him away.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Why is Kristaps Porziņģis considering retirement from NBA?