LAS VEGAS -- Two weeks after being booed mercilessly -- including by a young fan whose attempts to capture an emotional selfie and emphatic thumbs down immediately went viral -- when the New York Knicks selected him fourth overall in the NBA draft, Kristaps Porzingis emerged Saturday as the early darling of the Las Vegas Summer League.
A large Knicks contingent inside UNLV's Thomas & Mack Center cooed each time he touched the ball, there were audible oooohs when he rose to shoot and awwwws when those attempts didn’t fall. Knicks fans roared when Porzingis simply walked to the scorer’s table to check back in for the final minutes of a 78-73 win over the San Antonio Spurs.
Porzingis finished his NBA debut with 12 points on 3-of-5 shooting with three rebounds and two blocks in 18 minutes of floor time. Told after Saturday’s game that New York fans love him now, Porzingis smiled and replied, "I hope some of those booing fans are now cheering for me.”
The lean, 19-year-old Latvian import played limited minutes and disappeared from the bench a couple times to stretch because of a lingering hip injury, but he carried himself well in the opener. He was aggressive toward the basket and active on the defensive end, and he took the first step in dispelling the notion that the Knicks reached in the draft.
"He’s aggressive. He doesn’t look physically overpowering, but he plays a strong game,” Knicks coach Derek Fisher said. "He’s not afraid to go in there and mix it up. I thought he did a good job of doing that this afternoon. For that to be his first kind of NBA-type action, I thought he held himself together pretty good.”
Porzingis knows he needs to bulk up and admitted he must add at least 10 or 15 pounds -- and as much as 30. He wants to navigate that process without sacrificing his quickness and athleticism.
The rookie had a couple highlight-worthy moments during Saturday’s game, including when he rattled in an alley-oop toss from rookie teammate Jerian Grant and then hit a circus shot in the lane late in the fourth quarter.
Defensively, he used his length to disrupt and had a notable block on rookie Kyle Anderson (only for Anderson to get the ball back and draw a foul when he got Porzingis off his feet with a pump fake).
A monster media horde waited for Porzingis after the game, and he handled it with the same aplomb as his on-court debut. Porzingis said nerves struck him only once, and he quickly dismissed them; he was more anxious than anything to play a competitive game.
He admitted he is still learning the defensive calls and philosophies, but he never looked lost and was already anxious for his next chance to get on the floor.
"[Porzingis] has the potential to be really special on the defensive end,” Fisher said. "There were some things that he recognized and made adjustments on and supporting his teammates and switching out on smaller players, using his length to protect the basket, and that’s something that we’re going to be really excited about as we go forward. I thought on the defensive end he impacted the game in a major way.”
Added Fisher: "He’ll have the ability to do more things offensively over time. Execution in summer league will never be anywhere close to where it should be. There won’t be as many high-percentage shots, there will be more fouls and more court possessions. I thought in the spaces where he had a chance to be aggressive, he was aggressive. He got to the foul line. He’s not afraid of contact. For a guy his size, that’s really good to see.”
Porzingis seemed to find all the questions about hearing cheers in his debut humorous. “The opposite of what I heard on draft night,” he quipped.
He said New York fans have embraced him in his short time in the city, and he noted that, at 7-foot-3, it’s impossible for him to hide while navigating the city.
"It’s been a little crazy,” Porzingis said. "The fans have been nice -- not so much on social media but on the streets.”
Chances are he can safely check his Twitter mentions after Saturday’s game.