The Golden State Warriors are gearing up to welcome Kristaps Porzingis onto the court after the All-Star break, but players and coaches are getting their first impressions of Porzingis now as he works with the staff to progress towards a return from his Achilles tendinitis.

Ever since Porzingis was traded to the Warriors by the Atlanta Hawks for Jonathan Kuminga and Buddy Hield, he's been collaborating with Rick Celebrini and the rest of the Warriors' training and medical staff to determine how fit he is to return and evaluate him alongside the rest of the Warriors. In the meantime, various Warriors are getting to see how Porzingis can play in person and get their first looks at his mindset and mentality.

Warriors assistant coach Jacob Rubin was on 95.7 The Game at halftime of Wednesday's game against the Spurs and discussed what he's seen out of Porzingis since the big man got to the Bay Area.

"He's a good guy. He's a funny guy. He's a pro's pro, he's obviously seen a lot in this league. I think any time you're the type of offensive and defensive player he is, you have a lot of thoughts that other people might not realize. The way he sees the game, obviously he's played against everyone and he's seen a bunch of coverages on both sides of the ball, so he's been really good sharing his wisdom with us. Anytime you can get an outside perspective on how we do things, it always helps sharpen our brain a little bit."

There has been nothing but praise coming from the Warriors' locker room about Porzingis ever since he touched down in the Bay Area, mounting the excitement for when he can make his debut.

It's been a long journey for Porzingis, who finds Golden State as his 6th stop in his 10th season in the NBA. 

Porzingis got his start from Latvia when he was drafted No. 4 overall by the New York Knicks in the 2015 NBA Draft. Porzingis was quickly dubbed "The Unicorn" for his unique ability to excel on the perimeter and in the paint while standing at 7-foot-2.

He finished second in Rookie of the Year voting in the 2015-16 season and was voted as an All-Star in his third year in the league after averaging 22.7 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 2.4 blocks per game in the 2017-18 season.

However, Porzingis didn't get to play in the All-Star game due to a torn ACL he suffered just days before the game, and proceeded to miss the entire 2018-19 season, as well. At the trade deadline in 2019, the Knicks decided to move on from Porzingis, sending him to the Dallas Mavericks.

Porzingis spent two solid years in Dallas with budding star Luka Doncic, but eventually grew upset with his role and was traded to the Washington Wizards at the 2022 trade deadline. After a year with the Wizards, Porzingis was then traded again in the 2023 offseason to the Boston Celtics, where he would have some of his best play.

Porzingis won the 2024 NBA Championship alongside current Warrior Al Horford and the rest of the Celtics, but then was traded for a fourth time to the Hawks this past offseason as the Celtics took a rebuilding approach due to Jayson Tatum's injury.

Finally, injury concerns with the Hawks led him to play just 17 games this season and end up with the Warriors, where they hope to unlock the healthy, dominant play he exhibited in clutch moments for Boston and all the way back in his All-Star season in New York.