The Golden State Warriors are getting set to welcome Kristaps Porzingis into the lineup when they return from the All-Star break on Thursday to host the Boston Celtics. Porzingis has yet to play since he was traded to the Warriors from the Atlanta Hawks, but his recovery has been smooth, and he looks ready to take the court for the first time in a Warriors uniform.

It's an exciting development for the Warriors that have been missing that second star since Jimmy Butler went down with his torn ACL about a month ago, and if the players and coaches' perspectives of Porzingis as a player and person are to be believed, Warriors fans should be excited about what the 7-foot-2 Latvian is going to bring to Chase Center.

Victor Wembanyama is one of the most alien players we've ever seen, standing at 7-foot-4 with impeccable skills reminiscent of players much shorter than him. Even though it's just his third season, he's already taken the league by storm, and if the All-Star Game was anything to go by, his mindset is set to compete and be ready to dominate for years to come.

Before Wembanyama, though, there was an original "Unicorn" in the NBA: Porzingis. Warriors guard De'Anthony Melton made that connection after facing off with Wembanyama and the Spurs last Wednesday before the All-Star break and compared Porzingis to Wembanyama when discussing what Porzingis could bring to the Warriors.

“Kristaps can do so much. He’s a matchup nightmare for a lot of teams. You see with the Spurs, you have Wemby, who’s 7-a lot, and the stuff he can do and the matchup nightmares he brings to the table. So I think (Porzingis being) out there, it’s just going to give us a lot of size and a lot of mismatches that we need. Some teams he’s gonna kill just cause they can’t physically match up with him.”

The Golden State Warriors were the poster child of small ball at the height of their dynasty. The Warriors' Death Lineup from the mid-2010's had 6-foot-7 Draymond Green running the center position, using superior athleticism and talent to run every other team out of the gym. 

In fact, the Warriors became the first team in NBA history to win a championship without a player taller than 6-foot-11 in 2022, when they beat the Celtics with 6-foot-10 Nemanja Bjelica as the tallest player on their roster.

It's never been an issue for the Warriors to succeed without height, even though it's typically thought of as somewhat of a necessity for a team, so Porzingis represents a new dynamic in that aspect.

Quinten Post is a 7-footer, but his athleticism and overall skill pale in comparison to what Porzingis can bring when he's healthy. The lateral movement is a question considering Porzingis's injury history, but there's no doubt that the ball-handling, offensive repertoire, and defensive versatility will be an incredible combination that Steve Kerr and the Warriors have never really had the pleasure of working with.

Porzingis is an enigma with his conflicting talent and injury history, but that just makes it all the more exciting when he is able to take the court.