Warriors receive first jolt of Kristaps Porzingis experience after late scratch

SAN FRANCISCO – The Warriors on Sunday were initiated into the Kristaps Porzingis Experience. It occurred much sooner than they had hoped.After an encouraging performance in his Golden State debut on Thursday, Porzingis was a late scratch against the Denver Nuggets on Sunday. Out with an illness.This comes one day after coach Steve Kerr spoke with great anticipation of seeing the 7-foot-2 Porzingis, Golden State’s newest star, join Draymond Green and Al Horford as a rotation of defenders against 7-foot Nuggets superstar Nikola Joki.“He’s the best player in the world,” Kerr said on Saturday, referring to Joki. “You have to throw multiple bodies at him, and it’s really nice to have a 7-foot-3 guy to be able to guard him.“But we’ll have to mix it up between Dray and Al and Kristaps and show different coverages. The guy’s incredible, but it’s very helpful to have another really good defensive player.”The Warriors carved out a 128-117 win over the Nuggets, largely thanks to Horford’s excellent work and a massive fourth quarter by Brandin Podziemski. RESPECT THE SPLASH UNCLE pic.twitter.com/C3NjWYacZS — Warriors on NBCS (&commat;NBCSWarriors) February 22, 2026 Porzingis’ absence initially dropped Golden State’s interior defense back to where it was before he was acquired at the Feb. 5 trade deadline. Green, giving away six inches and 50 pounds, would start at center, followed by Horford and second-year big man Quinten Post, who would absorb minutes meant for Porzingis. Plan B was in effect.Not for long, though, as Green – who did not go through his usual pregame warmup on the Chase Center floor – was declared out with “lower back soreness” 20 minutes before tipoff.Kerr turned to Plan C. Horford, giving away three inches and 40 pounds to Joki, was elevated from his bench role into the starting lineup, followed by Post.Kerr, in a matter of hours, had to make multiple adjustments to his game plan against Joki and the Nuggets. At 7-feet, Post stands eye-to-eye with Joki but lacks the defensive pedigree possessed by Porzingis.Which left Golden State to confront Denver with the top four players on its payroll – Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler III, Green and Porzingis – unavailable. Horford was terrific in his expanded role. He played 27 minutes, producing 22 points, seven assists, three steals and two blocks “Al was fantastic,” Kerr said.“Once I realized I had to start, I just needed to make sure that I brought energy,” Horford said. “And those shots were available there early on.”Horford was ready. Post was ready, playing 21 minutes. Draymond presumably will be ready soon.Porzingis? He must be considered day-to-day until he can climb out of that designation.As rational an idea as it was for the Warriors to trade for Porzingis – his remarkable length addresses one of the team’s most obvious weaknesses – he comes with inherent risks. KP is perhaps the NBA’s greatest example of a “buyer beware” acquisition.Porzingis generally is a high-impact player – when healthy. He has missed 37 games this season, missed 40 games last season and 25 games the season before that. He has not exceeded 65 games since 2016-17, his second year in the league.Porzingis was initially listed on Golden State’s 9 a.m. Sunday injury report as “probable” due to left Achilles’ tendon injury management. On an updated report 15 minutes later, he was downgraded to “questionable” with illness. By 9:45, he was declared “out.”He made it through one game with Golden State, said he felt good and looked forward to an uptick in minutes. Three days later, he’s in his hotel room hoping to feel better.“I haven’t talked to him,” Kerr said 90 minutes before tipoff. “Just got a text this morning that he was sick and at the hotel, and he’s not even going to come over here. He’s pretty sick.”A frontcourt with Porzingis (7-foot-6 wingspan) and Green (7-foot-1 span) projects great promise. That, beyond the health and production of Curry, is the primary reason the Warriors still visualize a path to the playoffs.There was no projection Sunday afternoon for the duration of Porzingis’ illness; Kerr was uncertain whether the big man will be part of the traveling party Monday when the Warriors fly to New Orleans to open a two-game road trip.Either way, the Warriors have had their first encounter with the KP Experience, something with which his previous employers were familiar. They surely knew it was coming. Now they know how it feels.Download and follow the Dubs Talk Podcast

Warriors receive first jolt of Kristaps Porzingis experience after late scratch

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