Kristaps Porzingis appears to have escaped any major injury after leaving with “lower back soreness” in the second quarter of the Golden State Warriors’ 115-101 loss to the Detroit Pistons.
In the locker room after the game, Porzingis described how the spasms in his lower back worsened as the game progressed in the first half.
“I started feeling it right in the first quarter,” Porzingis said. “I started having a little cramp, [so] I tried to move. As long as I was warm, I was fine, but in that one game, I felt a little cramp down there.
Porzingis was referring to the play when he had a cramp in transition, when he jumped and reached his arm up to intercept Pistons center Paul Reed’s pass. Porzingis noted that he could feel tightness in his back on the plays leading up to that moment, but that specific action was the main trigger. Porzingis would immediately leave the game and not return.
Back injuries are somewhat familiar territory for Porzingis, but he hasn’t dealt with one in some time. Porzingis told reporters that this was something he had experienced earlier in his career, but that it was no longer a major problem after learning how to manage them.
“Honestly, I’m pretty good at managing and keeping my back strong so I’m sure it will heal quickly,” Porzingis told reporters. “It’s a little tight right now. Once I cooled down, it got even tighter. But I’m sure I’ll get it going soon.”

What does Kristaps Porzingis mean moving forward?
Based on Porzingis’ explanation of his back spasms, it doesn’t seem to be of much concern. But considering how much time Porzingis has missed due to various health issues, this is a bad stroke of luck for him and the Warriors. Just as he was starting to piece things together.
Earlier this week, Porzingis scored his season high of 30 points against the Washington Wizards, helping Golden State pick up a much-needed win. And before the Pistons game, he was able to play four of the Warriors’ last five games, logging 20, 22, 26 and 23 minutes in each of those games. The plan was really to start increasing Porzingis’ minutes as his stamina and wind were progressing well.
Porzingis said it’s “probably” unlikely he’ll play in the Warriors’ back-to-back against the Atlanta Hawks, which was already up in the air, given how much the team has erred on the side of caution in those schedule situations.
Thus, the Warriors will have to make do without their notable big man in their reunion with Jonathan Kuminga, who they dealt to the Hawks at the trade deadline. And they’ll try to salvage a road trip that saw them go 1-3 and drop to 33-37 on the season.
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