Change is coming to Golden State.
Although it’s not the change many were expecting.
In a shocking move, the Warriors acquired Kristaps Porzingis from the Hawks in exchange for Jonathan Kuminga and Buddy Hield.
Raise your hand if you saw this one coming. Now put it down, you liar.
Over the past few weeks, Dub Nation drooled over the idea of trading for former MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo. Pairing him with Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler (when he returns next season) was seen as a move that could extend the dynasty and give Curry at least another bite or two at his fifth NBA title.
Warrior fans were so enamored with the idea that they’d accepted the fact that Draymond Green, the heart and soul of the dynasty, would be shipped off to Milwaukee in the trade. However, they were less than thrilled with the notion that he might end up on the Lakers with LeBron James and Luka Doncic.
Alas, all of that chatter and time spent on trade machines was pointless because in the end, Warriors GM Mike Dunleavy Jr. did what he thought was best for Golden State — trade two pieces who weren’t in the rotation for an all-NBA caliber big man.
In reality, it feels as if the Warriors are trading one enigma for another. With all due respect to Hield, but he was a throw-in for salary filler.
For Kuminga, the drama-filled saga is finally over.
Since being drafted by the Warriors in 2021 with the 7th overall pick, his tenure in the Bay Area can best be described as rocky at best. There were flashes of greatness, which is why the Warriors held on to him for so long, and saddled with stretches of incompetence, which is why the return was so low.
Despite possessing incredible athletic traits, Kuminga never found consistency with the Warriors. Always believing he was a bride rather than a bridesmaid, he had trouble filling the role Dunleavy and head coach Steve Kerr needed out of him to make the roster work.
The up-and-down affair, thought to have reached its climax in the summer with a lengthy contract negotiation, finally hit a breaking point when Kuminga and his camp demanded a trade in January. Dunleavy wasted little time in addressing those rumors.
“I think as far as the demand, we’re aware of that. In terms of demands, when you make a demand, there needs to be a demand in the market,” Dunleavy said.
“We’ll see where that unfolds,” he added. “I tell them I’m willing to work with them, want to help people out, whether that’s J.K. or any player on our roster. We’re good with it, if that’s his wishes, trying to figure that out, but we got to do what’s best for our organization, and that’s what we’ll do, as far as it goes with the deadline coming up.”
So out he went. And in came possibly a bigger enigma.
On paper, Porzingis is an ideal fit alongside Curry, Green and Butler. A 7-2 big man who can knock down threes, it’s like he was built in a lab to play in Kerr’s motion offense. Add in his defensive capabilities as a rim-protecting center, and you can see his fit with this team and the vision they have for him.
But all of that depends on one tiny, minute detail. Will Porzingis even play?
He missed half of the 2025 season with the Celtics when he was diagnosed with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), an autonomic nervous system disorder that causes dizziness and extreme fatigue.
After being traded to the Hawks, he missed significant time this season due to left Achilles tendinitis. He’s only played in 17 out of a possible 52 games this year, and hasn’t seen the court since January 7 — although according to sources, it’s believed he will return to the court soon.
Make no mistake, when healthy Porzingis can flat-out hoop. He averaged 20.1 points on 37.5 percent from three and 7.2 rebounds per game during Boston’s title-winning season two years ago. The year before that, he averaged 23.2 points and 8.4 rebounds per game with Washington.
If healthy, this trade has the potential to be more monumental than the last trade deadline when Dunleavy traded for Butler.
A core four of Curry, Green, Butler and Porzingis is talented enough to compete with anybody in the Western Conference. But so many questions remain, and with Butler out for the foreseeable future after tearing his ACL a few weeks ago, none of those answers will come to fruition this season.
In the end, it’s a smart move for Golden State, and you can see why they did it:
They turned two non-rotation players into one rotation player. And if it doesn’t work out with Porzingis, he’s on a $30.7 million expiring contract after this season, which frees up cap space moving forward.
Will any of that amount to getting Curry his fifth ring? Time will tell, but at least the Warriors can say they did something — even if it’s not what Dub Nation was hoping for.
