Did you think Haliburton’s injury was the last bad news of the day at the start of an absolutely disastrous NBA season?
In case you haven’t hit refresh lately: Haliburton injury. Edwards injury. JJJr injury. Leonard out indefinitely. Duren injury. Suggs scare. Wallace injury. Williams injury.
I’m afraid not. And there, in the United States, it’s barely 3:30 p.m., so there’s still daylight left. To seek a vague consolation, the current development isn’t entirely new. It’s only the confirmation of an already known issue facing a new, grim scenario, becoming cloudier in a way we didn’t anticipate.
The Kristaps Porzingis problem in Golden State, whom they were already looking to move to a new team, could be about to take on a new dimension, shifting, so to speak, the burden of proof onto the player.
According to ESPN, the Warriors have internally proposed that his absence from the facilities could be construed as a breach of his obligations and used as an argument to try to void his contract. It’s a complex possibility, with nothing decided, while the franchise keeps the trade option open.
Team sources consulted by the outlet consider it very unlikely that the Latvian will return to play for the Warriors. His situation has moved from constraining the team’s planning to forcing the front office to figure out how to recover some value from a $40 million bet.
No Professional… No Personal Trace
The novelty, therefore, lies in how Golden State interprets his absence and at least tries to turn misfortune into an opportunity. Porzingis informed Mike Dunleavy that he needed to step away from the team due to a private health issue just before the start of training camp. The Warriors initially granted that space, but expected him to later report to the facilities and maintain in-person contact with his teammates and the medical staff.
After a meeting with Dunleavy and Rick Celebrini, the franchise’s chief medical officer, the club announced that the player would be near the team during his recovery. However, there hasn’t been a sign of the forward since. It was then that Golden State decided to adjust the official reason for his absence: stopped being listed as out with an illness and began appearing as a member of the roster away from duties.
According to ESPN, that change was deliberate, and his absence is no longer considered justified on the same terms as before. The possibility of “selling” it as a failure to perform services has been raised within the organization. This, in itself, does not mean the Warriors have initiated any contract-termination proceedings. But it is the first key turn toward that outcome.
In the Absence of Bread, Liquidity
Porzingis earns $20 million this season and has another $20 million planned for the next, although only three of those are guaranteed. That protection makes his deal, practically, a contract close to expiration, with limited financial commitment for the following term. The Warriors also structured it to be able to trade him immediately, without waiting for December 15.
That’s where much of his current value lies. A team interested in trimming future payroll could accept his contract in exchange for a player who could actually help Golden State. If Porzingis were also willing to concede a substantial amount through a buyout, the deal could become even more attractive for that hypothetical destination.
Canceling the contract, by contrast, would provide substantial financial relief for a team that would have a much harder time achieving the same on the court, with Stephen Curry carrying the load as if he were 25 instead of 38. The Warriors sit $20.4 million over the luxury tax threshold. Eliminating the center’s salary would slash nearly all of that bill and put them below the first apron.
However, it would not free up space to sign a top-tier replacement in free agency. According to ESPN, they could only add a player on a minimum contract.
Remembering the Melton Case
That’s why the preferred path resembles a move Dunleavy executed two seasons ago. Golden State had signed De’Anthony Melton for one year and $12.8 million when an ACL tear prematurely ended his season. The front office later used that contract to acquire Dennis Schröder from Brooklyn, at a net cost of two second-round picks.
Schröder played 24 games with the Warriors before entering the trade that sent Jimmy Butler to San Francisco. The precedent offers a model: attach a lower-value asset to Porzingis’s contract, land someone who can contribute immediately, and preserve the option to fold that salary into a larger deal before the market closes.
The obstacle is finding a willing partner. Dunleavy, per sources, has already canvassed the market with little success. Franchises are still evaluating their rosters, and there are few teams willing to part with a usable player for modest compensation.
The Good News of the Day in San Francisco
And now, to echo Antena3 Noticias, which, after half an hour of digesting the latest news, closes with the “Good News of the Day”; like someone offering you a stick of gum after telling you they’re about to foreclose on your house.
There is also strawberry gum for the Warriors: Yaxel Lendeborg is starting to look like he belongs in the First Rookie Quintet, with 31 points and tremendous audacity against Jokic’s Nuggets. A target for the No. 11 pick in the Draft that Porzingis’s absence can only help clear away.
Yaxel WENT OFF in Golden State’s win 🔥
31 PTS (career-high)
12 REB (game-high)
6 ASTHe becomes the first @warriors rookie since Steph Curry (2/10/2010) to record 30+ PTS, 10+ REB, and 5+ AST in a single game! https://t.co/FYe42bFtD8
— NBA (@NBA) October 27, 2026
