30 Killer Facts About Kristaps Porziņģis Every Fan Must Know

Kristaps Porziņģis, standing at 7 ft 3 in, is one of the tallest active players in the National Basketball Association, currently playing for Dallas Mavericks. Prior to this, he shone as the star of the New York Knicks, but following disagreements with the front office, was traded to Dallas. He is the youngest ever recipient of the EuroCup Basketball Rising Star award in 2015, having earned it at the age of 18. Here are some really interesting facts about the basketball player that will make you love him more:

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1.  Kristaps was selected with the fourth overall pick in the 2015 NBA draft by the New York Knicks, on June 25, 2015, becoming the highest drafter Latvian and Baltic player in NBA history.
2.  In January 2018, Porziņģis was averaging 19 shot attempts per game for the Knicks, the most ever by a player his size. In fact, the only players 7 ft 3 in or taller to average 15 field goal attempts per game were Ralph Sampson and Yao Ming.
3.  With a strong EuroCup performance in 2014-2015, he became the winner of the EuroCup Rising Star Award of the season, on April 15, 2015.
4.  In his rookie season, he scored 24 points, 14 rebounds and seven blocked shots while leading the Knicks to a 107–102 victory over the Houston Rockets, on November 21, 2015, becoming the first rookie to reach such totals since Tim Duncan in 1998.
5.  He also became the first 20-year-old to have registered such a stat line, in a single game, since Shaquille O’Neal’s performance in 1992-93.
6.  Kristaps Porziņģis was born on August 2, 1995, to Talis Porziņģis and Ingrida Porziņģis in Liepaja, Latvia, Northern Europe.
7.  His father, in his teenage days, played basketball and even competed semi-professionally, before becoming a bus driver to support the family.
8.  His mother was also said to be have been a player in the Latvia women's youth national basketball team, before starting a family.
9.  His older brother Jānis Porziņģis is also a professional basketball player, who competed at the European 2nd tier EuroCup level, and also played in various national leagues for more than 10 years.
10.  Jānis is known to be Kristaps’s mentor, coaching him on and off the court, conversing and breaking down each and every detail possible, after playing a match.


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11.  His eldest brother Mārtiņš Porziņģis, who is nearly 15 years older to Kristaps, is also an avid basketball player. It was said that Kristaps would often train in the basketball camps with him.
12.  In a 2017 E:60 documentary, his parents revealed that Kristaps had another immediately sibling – Toms, who was born four years before Kristaps, but died at the 14 months.
13.  He had actually started playing basketball at the young age of 6, and played in youth competition with BK Liepājas Lauvas, the most famous club based in hometown of Liepāja, until he was 15 years old.
14.  A video of him playing in the club was sent to teams in Spain and Italy, by an agent, following which, Baloncesto Sevilla called him for a tryout.
15.  He was diagnosed with Anemia, by Inmaculada Avivar, a nutritionist for Sevilla, due to which he would feel fatigue, shortness of breath and inability to exercise.
16.  However, he gradually overcame the condition, and started showing improvement in his game. Still, he had problems in picking up the language in Seville, which made him reluctant to return to Seville.
17.  In fact, his first season with the Seville junior squad, he faced a lot of difficulties in communicating with his coach and his teammates. He was often sleepy due to his poor health condition.
18.  Porziņģis represented the Sevilla junior team at the Nike International Junior Tournament, in early 2013, and recorded 15 points and 6 rebounds in game against Union Olimpija.
19.  During 2014 NBA draft, it was reported that Oklahoma City Thunder were going to select him with the 21st pick, but he withdrew his name, just before the day of the draft.
20.  He was the fourth-youngest prospect in the top-100 rankings of DraftExpress.com, as he was considered to be an unfinished product and a top-15 draft pick.


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21.  He entered the 2015 NBA draft, as a lottery pick, and a potential top-5 selection, and was compared with Darko Miličić, a former lottery selection widely considered a draft bust.
22.  In March 2019, a woman accused Porziņģis of raping her at the Sky building in February 2018, hours after he tore his ACL.
23.  She claimed that he waited for a year before coming out publicly, as she had discussed a $68,000 payout from Porziņģis, to keep quiet.
24.  However, Porziņģis’s attorney Roland G. Riopelle, denied the claim and added that he has referred the case to federal authorities due to the "accuser's extortionate demands."
25.  During the 2019-2020 season, during the 121–107 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies, he scored 32 points and 12 rebounds, despite leaving the game with a broken nose.
26.  Porziņģis, in the 115–107 win over the Chicago Bulls on March 23, 2016, was just one point short of becoming the first rookie, since Patrick Ewing to put up 30 points and 10 rebounds in one game for the Knicks.
27.  On May 25, 2014, Kristaps faced his idol Justin Doellman of Barcelona, whom he calls to be the "best power forward in Spanish basketball." In the game, he scored 14 points against Doellman's team.
28.  In October 2016, Porziņģis signed a shoe deal with Adidas, which is reportedly the most lucrative deal for a European player. Prior to this, he had partnered with Nike for his rookie season.
29.  He recorded the best start to a season for a Knicks player, in the 2017-2018 season, earning 300 points through 10 games, two more than Bernard King had to open the 1984–85 season.
30.  In the 127–123 overtime win over the New Orleans Pelicans during the 2019-2020 season, he registered 34 points, 12 rebounds and 5 blocks, becoming the first player since Shaquille O’Neal to have consecutive 30-point, 5-block games.
31.  Kristaps Porziņģis Net Worth: $6 Million