Warriors’ Kristaps Porzingis stepping away from basketball

Golden State Warriors center Kristaps Porzingis announced on Friday that he is stepping away from basketball to prioritize his health. The 31-year-old big man shared on X that his body did not respond as anticipated during his ramp-up for the season. Porzingis had missed training camp and pre-season games due to an undisclosed health-related matter and will work with the organization to resolve the situation.

The development follows reports that Golden State stopped delivering payments to Porzingis and is working to trade his $20 million salary ahead of the February 11 deadline. Porzingis signed a two-year, $40 million deal with the Warriors during the summer after playing 15 games for them last season.