Enes Kanter Thanks Knicks for Waiving Him After Trail Blazers Beat Thunder

Portland Trail Blazers center Enes Kanter thanked his former employers Tuesday after the Blazers advanced to the second round of the 2019 NBA playoffs with a 118-115 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 5 of their first-round series.

As seen in the following video, courtesy of the Washington Post's Ben Golliver, Kanter expressed gratitude toward the New York Knicks for waiving him and allowing him to join the Blazers:

Kanter, who has stepped into a starting role in Portland because of the season-ending injury suffered by Jusuf Nurkic, also thanked the teams who decided against signing him.

While Damian Lillard stole the show Monday with 50 points, included a buzzer-beating three from 37 feet out, Kanter was a key contributor for Portland once again with 13 points, 13 rebounds and four assists.

Damian Lillard gets it off in time

In five 2018-19 playoff games, Kanter is averaging 13.2 points and 10.2 boards for a Portland team that has advanced past the first round for the first time since 2016, and it was made possible by the NBA-worst Knicks parting ways with him in February.

The stage is now set for a potential second-round matchup between third-seeded Portland and the No. 2 Denver Nuggets, who beat the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday to take a 3-2 series lead.

Portland went just 1-3 against the Nuggets during the regular season, but the Trail Blazers have a legitimate chance to reach the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2000.

If the Blazers are going to continue their playoff march and threaten the top-seeded Golden State Warriors in a potential Western Conference Finals showdown, then Kanter figures to be a significant part of it because of his status as Portland's most accomplished and talented big.