Kristaps Porzingis declared for the NBA draft in April and he is from Latvia. From a far that sentence will make you think he is just one of those guys from Europe who think they can be the Dirk Nowitzki of the NBA. A lot of other European players have tried that as well, but it hasn’t worked out as well as they would have thought. Andrea Bargnani? Darko Milicic? Need I say more? Kristaps is far from the Bargnani people may think he is.
Ever since he declared, his stock has been rising, and some scouts say that he is better than projected first overall pick Karl-Anthony Towns. He’s actually so good in his workouts that he is making the Lakers and Sixers second guess their selections, and they may pick him. He has slowly secured a top 5 spot for himself, and for good reason. Now he just wants to prove people wrong.
Kristaps spoke with SLAM Magazine about his potential:
“I’m 7-1 with good mobility, am pretty quick for my size, and have good athleticism. I’m really long and can block shots on defense, too.”
“I’m not the stiff European that everyone thinks I am,” he said with a chuckle
So is it really a risk anymore to draft a European? Maybe, but Kristaps has been putting in work in these NBA workouts and people have been taking notice. Who knows what if he actually does become the next Dirk Nowitzki. Like he said, he can shoot, defend, and he’s pretty quick for his size. A 7’1 player who can drain 3 balls. Too European to be true? I don’t think so.
