By all accounts, Kristaps Porzingis far exceeded expectations during his rookie season with the Knicks. The Latvian forward averaged over 14 points per game, grabbed over seven boards, and had a litany of highlight plays showcasing his skills, including incredible blocks, posterizing dunks, and no-look passes. Porzingis was so popular in New York that they were selling out of his jerseys by November, and he made the All-Rookie team in his first pro season.
The ceiling is incredibly high for Kristaps and there is little doubt that he could one day become an All-Star caliber player, or maybe even a superstar. However, new Knicks coach Jeff Hornacek put tremendous pressure on the 20-year-old when he recently remarked to reporters that he thought Porzingis could actually be not just a top-ten or top-fifteen player, but the single best player in the league.
Hornacek, on Porzingis: "Why can't he be a top-5 player in this league? Why can't he be the best player in this league?"
— Chris Herring (@Herring_NBA) June 3, 2016
While Knicks fans are certainly hoping he’s on to something, the former Suns coach may be just a little off with that assessment. While Porzingis does a lot of things really well, he’s never going to have LeBron, or even Steph Curry-like potential. However, that doesn’t mean he can’t be the player the Knicks build around in the future if he grows into that role over the next few seasons.
For now, Porzingis will take his seat behind Carmelo Anthony — and if they’re lucky, a big-time free agent — in the Knicks pecking order, but there is little question that he is on the rise and could end up having one of the best careers of anyone in his draft class.
