Warriors reportedly exploring Kristaps Porziņģis trade as he deals with illness

Warriors reportedly exploring Kristaps Porziņģis trade as he deals with illness originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Kristaps Porziņģis’ time with the Warriors could soon be over.

The veteran center, whom Golden State acquired at the trade deadline in February and played in just 15 games last season before signing a two-year, $40 million contract with the team this offseason, has not practiced or played with the team this preseason, and might not at any point during the 2026-27 NBA season, which begins for the Warriors on Wednesday against the Los Angeles Lakers at Crypto.com Arena.

Golden State has started exploring trade routes for Porziņģis, who has no timetable for a return to the court as he continues to deal with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome, or POTS, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported Wednesday, citing sources.

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

As Charania mentioned, Porziņģis now is seriously contemplating his future in basketball as he continues to deal with the recurring symptoms from his autoimmune condition.

Porziņģis spent time in the Bay Area and at the Warriors’ facility throughout the offseason, and it appeared both he and the team were optimistic about his upcoming season, but shortly before Warriors media day started on Sept. 28, general manager Mike Dunleavy found out that Porziņģis would miss the start of training camp and remain away from the team because of the illness.

Then, on Oct. 13, Porziņģis returned to the Warriors’ facility for the first time since his absence, where he met with Dunleavy and director of sports medicine and performance Rick Celebrini and his staff.

In the days since, neither Dunleavy nor coach Steve Kerr provided any additional update or any other information regarding Porziņģis’ situation, but the veteran center himself did address his absence in a post on social media and cleared up some online speculation.

I appreciate all the internet doctors trying to diagnose and help, but I'm in the best hands. So everyone can relax now 😄🙏🏼 and I don’t have hiv or aids.

— Kristaps Porzingis (@kporzee) October 14, 2026

While it’s unclear exactly what the future holds for Porziņģis, it is clear that Golden State would like to find a replacement.

This story originally appeared on NBCSportsBayArea.com.