With new reports emerging about the Golden State Warriors‘ plans of trying to trade Kristaps Porzingis and holding payments on his contract this season, all signs point to the star center retiring before playing in an NBA again.
Porzingis hasn’t suited up for the Warriors this season, and while he remains out indefinitely with no return date or timeline, recent reports suggest his career is coming to an end, with retirement the most likely outcome to solve all the latest drama.
Porzingis was the fourth pick in the 2015 NBA Draft by the New York Knicks, and after bouncing around the league throughout his career, winning a championship with the Boston Celtics in 2024, before then arriving in Golden State in early 2025, he could very well retire to end the drama with the Warriors as his POTS illness continues to keep him sidelined.
Warriors Kristaps Porzingis Likely To Retire Amid Contract, Trade Rumors
Porzingis was expected to miss the start of the year, but a day into the new NBA season, Shams Charania reported the Warriors were exploring trade possibilities for the 31-year-old center.
Amid that report, the ESPN insider said if Porzingis can’t overcome his health issue, ending his basketball career was on the table.
“If there is no breakthrough in recovery, stepping away from basketball — for good — is possible,” he wrote in a post on X.
In the time since, the drama between Porzingis and the Warriors has only gotten worse. Most recently, Charania reported that Golden State is withholding payments from the center as he remains out, and once again added that retirement is a realistic way for this saga to end, with his career ‘winding down.’
“Golden State is permitted to move his contract at any point before the Feb. 11 deadline even without paying him currently, and will continue exhausting trade avenues as the 31-year-old leans toward ending his NBA career. ”
Additionally, NBA reporter Brett Siegel implied that amid Porzingis not getting paid and his continued absence, it is ‘very likely’ he will retire in the near future.
“When a player refuses to play or is away from the team without organizational approval, the team has the right to withhold portions of their salary or place funds into an escrow account,” he wrote in a post. “In doing so, any team that trades for Porzingis can immediately buy him out, essentially moving off a bigger, unwanted contract to absorb Porzingis, who will very likely retire.”
That is what is happening with Kristaps Porzingis and the Warriors, as the team will
Porzingis is reportedly willing to accept a significant contract buyout to help the Warriors financially, but that would signal even further that his basketball career is nearing an end, as retirement now feels like the most likely outcome for the veteran big man.
Former 4th Overall Pick In The NBA
If this is the end for Porzingis, he’s had an interesting NBA career, to say the least.
As mentioned, he was selected fourth overall in 2015 by the Knicks and was met with extreme scrutiny as he began his professional stint in America. He played three seasons in New York, putting up roughly 18 points, seven rebounds, and two blocks in 185 total games.
He tore his ACL in 2018 and missed the following season. Porzingis was traded from the Knicks to the Dallas Mavericks in early 2019, putting up averages of 20 points and nine rebounds in 134 games.
He was then moved to the Washington Wizards for a season and a half, before then joining the Celtics in 2023. Porzingis played a key role on Boston’s 2024 title-winning team, and while that’s when the POTS illness that might lead to his retirement first popped up, the team likely couldn’t have won the championship without him.
With the Celtics needing to save money, Porzingis was traded to the Atlanta Hawks in 2025. He played just 17 games there before getting dealt once again to the Warriors in a package that was highlighted by Jonathan Kuminga.
In 15 games for Golden State last season, Porzingis averaged 16.1 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.2 blocks, but his availability and health issues were still a huge concern.
Now, Porzingis and the Warriors are here, with all the recent news that’s come out over the past few weeks. With him still not playing and Golden State holding back his money and trying to trade him, it looks as though the Latvian will retire.
If this is the end, Porzingis played in 533 total NBA games with averages of 19.5 points, 7.6 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 1.8 blocks. He made the 2015-16 All-Rookie team, was a one-time All-Star, and a title winner in 2024. The center has made $253 million in career earnings, not including his current contract that the Warriors aren’t paying him.
Porzingis is likely to retire, and while the past few years of his NBA journey have been nothing short of wild, he’ll always be one of the biggest ‘what ifs’ in league history.
Kristaps Porzingis Likely To Retire Amid Warriors Trade, Contract Drama: Report