Kristaps Porzingis Says He Won't Play for Latvia at Rio 2016 Olympics Qualifier

New York Knicks forward Kristaps Porzingis will not play for the Latvia national team in the qualifying tournament for the 2016 Rio Olympics, he announced at a Monday press conference.

Reinis Lacis of AtTheHive.com and Al Iannazzone of Newsday reported the news, with Iannazzone noting that Porzingis stated he "wanted to work on getting stronger and his overall game." 

Porzingis, 20, averaged 14.3 points and 7.3 rebounds per game as a rookie. He missed the season's last seven games with a shoulder injury, which may have played into his decision to skip international competition.

Latvia is scheduled to play in the qualifier in July. The country is part of a group with Japan and the Czech Republic that will make a trip to Serbia hoping to earn one of the last trips to Rio. Latvia's basketball side has not made an Olympic appearance since 1936 and counts Porzingis as its only current NBA player.

It's clear, at least for now, Porzingis is prioritizing his stateside commitment over trying to end Latvia's Olympic drought. The Knicks (particularly interim coach Kurt Rambis) were open about their desire for him to forgo international competition.

“If I had my choice, I think it’s obvious what I want,” Rambis said, per Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News. “But I understand a player’s commitments to their country and their desires to play for their country. I understand all that. But from a selfish standpoint, looking at it purely from a Knicks standpoint, yeah, we want him here with us the whole time.”

Rambis has not been formally named the Knicks' full-time coach, so it's unclear if his words had much sway. But he is seen as a direct link to team president Phil Jackson. The pair are good friends and share many of the same basketball philosophies (hello, triangle offense). If Rambis was comfortable publicly pushing Porzingis in a certain direction, it's likely Jackson was OK with him doing so.

“When you’re playing, you go back to your strengths, you go back to your instincts," Rambis said, per Bondy. "So a lot of training and developing and changing your game can happen over the summer. But sometimes playing can be bad if you’re doing too much of it. And it’s not conducive to player development.”

For as much praise as Porzingis rightfully received for his play, Rambis isn't wrong about his young protege's need for improvement. Porzingis desperately needs to add strength to become a better defensive player, and adding more consistency to his three-point shot is paramount to his offensive development. 

Even before the shoulder injury, it was clear the NBA grind was starting to get to him. Porzingis had his worst shooting month in March, and his rebounding rate was below his season average each of the last two months. Working on building his body should help him avoid a similar dip in performance next season. 

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