Any time there’s a weird story involving the New York Knicks, you can always expect it to get weirder. The Knicks nearly traded Kristaps Porzingis, their 22-year-old power forward filled with promise, because he skipped his exit meeting with former team president Phil Jackson in April. The team spent the week leading up to the NBA Draft trying to trade him but couldn’t find a deal that suited them.

In the end, Porzginis remained a Knick and said he hopes to stay in New York for the rest of his career. With the Knicks firing Jackson following the draft, it appeared the Porzingis drama finally ended. But that may not be so. According to a report by Peter Vescey, Porzingis’ biggest issues involved his relationship with coach Jeff Hornacek.

Vescey reports Porzingis and Hornacek butted heads in a tremendous way last season. At one point, Hornacek cornered forward Willy Hernangomez and told him to tell Porzingis to “stop playing like a pussy.” That comment incited Porzingis to skip his exit meeting and stop talking to Hornacek altogether.

Vescey noted Porzingis and Hornacek have begun speaking again through text or through Hernangomez this offseason. That’s nice, but you’d hope your coach and your star player would be cool speaking face to face.

[PatreonThe Big Lead; Photo Credit: Elite Sports NY]

About Jesse Kramer

Jesse is a writer and editor for The Comeback. He has also worked for SI.com and runs The Catch and Shoot, a college basketball website based in Chicago. He is a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. Follow Jesse on Twitter @Jesse_Kramer.