Golden State acquires Atlanta’s Kristaps Porzingis

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

The Golden State Warriors have just bolstered their frontcourt rotation after landing stretch big man Kristaps Porzingis in a trade deal with the Atlanta Hawks, finalized Feb. 5, 2026.

In exchange, Atlanta will receive shooting guard Buddy Hield and athletic small forward Jonathan Kuminga, who has been asking to be traded even before the 2025-26 NBA regular season kicked off.

Aside from his return to the Western Conference, Porzingis also officially reunited with Al Horford as teammates. The frontcourt duo won the 2024 NBA championship title together when they were still a part of the Boston Celtics franchise.

The move seemed to be Golden State’s answer to its interior woes in the ongoing season, where it is allowing 50.4 points in the paint per game, ranking 15th in the league in opponents’ points in the lane per game.

Compared to its defensive numbers last NBA season, when it allowed 46.1 points in the paint per game, the Warriors are currently faring worse.

Despite playing limited minutes this season, Porzingis has still proved his defensive prowess by averaging 1.3 blocks per game.

In 17 games before leaving Atlanta, Porzingis averaged 17.1 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 2.7 assists per game.

However, Golden State will have to deal with Porzingis’ injury-laden season. He has missed 33 games so far with left Achilles tendinitis and postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome.

If he returns healthy, Golden State projects a starting lineup of Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, Brandin Podziemski, Moses Moody, and Porzingis at center.

The Warriors are currently in an emergency state after superstar Jimmy Butler was ruled out for the season due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee.

Golden State is in eighth place in the Western Conference with a 27-24 record and aims to finish strong to replicate its playoff qualification last year.