Kristaps Porzingis praised for having big impact on Knicks

Many of the question marks about Kristaps Porzingis heading into his rookie season have been answered emphatically and with exclamation points.

Is he ready to play in the NBA? With his skinny frame, is he physically strong enough to play in the NBA? Can he handle the pressures of New York? Can he make an impact quickly? Can he make his presence felt on defense?

All of those questions that have followed Porzingis since the Knicks drafted him fourth overall can be answered with a resounding yes thus far.

It's been only 14 games, but Porzingis is shutting up the doubters and dropping the jaws of everyone who has watched the 7-3 Latvian.

Porzingis had another eye-opening performance Saturday night with a 24-point, 14-rebound, seven-block masterpiece in the Knicks' 107-102 win over the Rockets. The last 20-year-old to have 24-14-7 in those categories in a game was Shaquille O'Neal in 1992-93.

"What's really good about it is it doesn't seem that he's trying to do what he's doing," Derek Fisher said. "He's not trying to impress everybody and show 'I'm capable of doing certain things.' I think he's doing his best to play the game, and whatever presents itself, he's taking advantage of it.

"To me, that's a sign of a really good player that can make it look not necessarily easy, but that he's comfortable just making the game easy."

Fisher said Porzingis' energy on defense and his ability to come from the weak side to meet players at the rim and contest shots are among the things that impressed Knicks management before they drafted him.

Porzingis' impact on both ends is one of the reasons the Knicks have won four straight and take an 8-6 record into Monday night's game against the Heat. "We're just kind of scratching the surface right now of what we can be and where we're trying to go," Carmelo Anthony said.

Porzingis had 29 points and 11 rebounds against Charlotte on Tuesday night at the Garden, leading to chants of "POR-ZING-IS!" After a quiet five-point game Thursday night in Oklahoma City, he stood tall down the stretch in Houston.

Porzingis ranks third among rookies in scoring (13.8 points) and blocks (1.5) and second in rebounds (8.8) and double-doubles (six). He said he's focusing on being more consistent because he believes he can produce scoring and rebounding double-doubles every night.

"These past two seasons I was playing in Spain, I used to have ups and downs," he said. "I really wasn't consistent. The same thing happens here. This is a level higher, this is better basketball, so it's even harder to be consistent when guys go into details watching film about you, just trying to get you out of your rhythm.

"That's the thing that every game, every season I have to get better at and just be more consistent so I can make sure I help the team every game."

Porzingis faced other questions, too: Did the Knicks make a mistake taking him rather than better-known college players? Is he a project who won't be able to help them for a few years?

Thus far, he has answered them with a resounding no.

By Al Iannazzone

al.iannazzone@newsday.comAl_Iannazzone

Al Iannazzone covers the Jets for Newsday after spending nearly two decades on the NBA beat with Knicks and Nets.