New York Knicks forward Kristaps Porzingis might be upset with the franchise right now, but that doesn’t mean he wants out.
Kristaps Porzingis choosing not to attend his exit meeting with the New York Knicks and president Phil Jackson was a power move that sent shockwaves around the basketball world. For the first time since the unicorn has spoken.The 21-year-old future of the franchise was once thought to be Jackson’s golden boy. Now he’s forced to reassure Marc Berman of The New York Post that he wants to remain a Knick.
“Of course,” Porzingis told The Post at his luxury apartment complex in Manhattan, when asked if he wants to be a Knick next year. “I love New York. I love New York.”
Porzingis doesn’t plan to meet with Jackson before he leaves for Latvia on Thursday and the young superstar hasn’t given the team an explanation for skipping out on the exit meeting.
Porzingis is upset about the Zen Master’s treatment of his teammate and close friend Carmelo Anthony.
Per Berman, Jackson is used to dealing with rebellious players. The “individual” mentions Kobe Bryant and Andrew Bynum as examples.
“It wasn’t right,” said one individual familiar with Jackson’s feelings on the blow-off. “But Phil went through this with Kobe [Bryant] and Andrew [Bynum], when they were still young but started to sprout their opinions and rebelled. It worked for Kobe. Hopefully this will make Kristaps better in the long run.”
