Celtics' Kristaps Porzingis Reportedly Linked to Hawks, Spurs, More amid Trade Rumors

After missing out on Kevin Durant, the San Antonio Spurs are entertaining the possibility of acquiring Boston Celtics center Kristaps Porziņģis.

Per NBA insider Jake Fischer, the Spurs have had "exploratory talks" about a Porziņģis trade. Marc Stein later added that the Atlanta Hawks "have emerged a serious trade suitor" for the Celtics big man.

Porziņģis is a popular name in the trade market right now, with Fischer reporting last week the Phoenix Suns did "background work" on the 29-year-old.

The Spurs were among the teams on Durant's preference list before he was traded to the Houston Rockets on Sunday.

Even though Durant was open to playing in San Antonio, there's no indication the Spurs really made a push to add him. In fact, John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 reported they never made a formal offer to the Suns.

Houston wound up sending Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, the No. 10 overall pick in the 2025 NBA draft and five second-round picks to the Suns in exchange for Durant.

A Porziņģis trade would presumably cost an acquiring team less than that package. The Spurs may not have wanted to accelerate their timeline as much as the 36-year-old Durant would have, but Porziņģis doesn't turn 30 until Aug. 2.

Porziņģis' age would line up closer to current Spurs stars Victor Wembanyama (21) and De'Aaron Fox (27). He would also provide another versatile scoring option to a roster lacking impact players with size around Wembanyama.

There are certainly built-in risks for any team that might try to acquire Porziņģis. He already has a long injury history that has kept him out of action for extended periods.

When Porziņģis does play, he can make a positive impact. The Latvian star averaged 19.8 points on 50.2 percent shooting (39.2 percent from three), 7.0 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game in 99 starts with the Celtics over the past two seasons.

The Spurs are likely to explore various avenues to improve next season, while also continuing to develop young players like Wembanyama and whomever they add with the No. 2 pick in the draft on Wednesday.

San Antonio finished the 2024-25 campaign with a 34-48 record, matching its best record in the past six seasons. The Spurs haven't made the postseason since the 2018-19 season.