Kristaps Porzingis is a tall, lanky power forward. He is 7’3″ and can shoot threes like a guard. Before last years NBA draft, he was a mystery, but he had a huge upside. Now, “Porzingod” looks like he is the savior of the New York Knicks. They got lucky to get him, because according to Ian Begley of ESPN, Phil Jackson told the Los Angeles Lakers that they would regret it if they didn’t pick Porzingis:
Phil Jackson told the Lakers that they’d ‘be sorry’ if they didn’t select Kristaps Porzingis in the 2015 NBA Draft. Jackson made the comments to MSG Network. “We knew that he had a lot of talent. We saw that even in the workout with him shooting, and I had some fun with one of the Buss guys (Lakers executives) and I told him after the workout, ‘You guys are going to be sorry if you don’t pick up Porzingis with the 2nd pick.’ They didn’t, we did,” Jackson said. The Lakers took D’Angelo Russell at No. 2 and the Knicks drafted Porzingis at No. 4.
Was Phil Jackson right? The Lakers picked up Russell, a point guard. The Lakers could have picked anyone with the No. 2 pick because all positions were needed. They just needed the most talented player available. Who will be better? We don’t know. Through one season, Kristaps averaged one more PPG than DeAngelo, shot a better percentage from the floor, but DeAngelo shot slightly better from three. They both played equally well in their rookie seasons, and they both look to have impressive careers.
