Kristaps Porzingis stunned fans and maybe even the Knicks with his immediate impact as an NBA player. It was obvious quickly just how good a player Porzingis was and how badly New York needed to keep him around long term. Luckily for them, the majority of young stars stay with the team that drafted them for at least two contracts.
The Knicks took a step forward in keeping Porzingis longterm when, per RealGM's transaction timeline, they picked up his team option for the 2018-19 season. This will lock Porzingis into the Knicks for every year of his rookie contract before they will either sign him to an extension or allow him to become a restricted free agent.
The Knicks picked up the 2018-19 team option on Kristaps Porzingis' contract on Wednesday, per the Real GM transaction wire.
— Ian Begley (@IanBegley) August 11, 2017
This is a big step forward for New York after former president, Phil Jackson, appeared to have broken the relationship between the Knicks and Jackson. Now with Porzingis locked up for the rest of his rookie contract they can focus on extending him past that and keeping him in New York for a very long time.
