Kristaps Porzingis Showed Lots of Promise in Summer League

The New York Knicks‘ Summer League action is over and despite Kristaps Porzingis missing the fifth and final game because of being “tired“, he showed glimpses justifying why Phil Jackson and company selected him with the fourth overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft.

In four games Porzingis averaged 10.5 points, 3.2 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, and 1.8 blocks per game. Porzingis was held to 20.5 minutes each game reportedly because of hip tightness. In four games, there was a lot to like about Porzingis’ game. In fact, after Porzingis’ first game, James Worthy said that he is “a combination of Dirk Nowitzki and Kevin Durant”.

Shooting

Right away in Porzingis’ Summer League debut game, he showed off his nice shooter’s touch by going off the glass for his first field goal.

Check out @kporzee's first bucket at #NBASummer League! @nyknicks https://t.co/SKGXPjdlWC
— NBA Summer League (@NBASummerLeague) July 11, 2015

Porzingis shot 48% from the field in Summer League and despite shooting only 20% from downtown, at least he showed the ability to hit them.

Porzingis also showed the ability to put the ball on the floor when being closed out and ran off the three-point line. In the clip below, Porzingis again showed off his ability to go off-glass as well.

Another impressive skill that Porzingis displayed during Summer League was his ability to finish with his left hand.

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Defensive Ability

What was probably the most shocking to see during Summer League was Porzingis’ defensive ability, given just how low the expectations were for him defensively. Coming into the league with the typical “soft-Euro” stereotype, Porzingis proved the doubters wrong by showing the ability to use his length to effectively alter shots. Porzingis is also able to move his feet quick enough to get to the right defensive spots in time.

Right from tip-off in Porzingis’ debut game he was tested and did not back down.

In this clip Porzingis nicely used his 7’3″ frame to contest the shot without fouling. Although Porzingis did average 4.25 fouls per game in Summer League… The average might be a little skewed because Porzingis committed seven fouls against the Philadelphia 76ers, where he had to defend Jahlil Okafor. Which should not be in problem in the regular season, given Porzingis will be playing power forward instead of center for the regular squad.

Speaking of Jahlil Okafor, even though Porzingis picked up a lot of fouls guarding him…Porzingis got him back a few times, throwing Okafor a block party!

Porzingis also used his length well against Okafor, denying him the entry pass and stealing the ball.

Agility

Porzingis in the next clip again showed his ability to read the passing lanes, stealing the ball and going the distance (even though he traveled back to Latvia) for the jam.

Just like the previous clip, Porzingis again showed his ability to run the floor as well! Porzingis also shows his capability to read the defense and to make the right play, as well as the ability to make an accurate pass.