After spending the first two seasons of his NBA career with the Knicks, the Chicago Bulls signed Luke Kornet to a two-year deal in July 2019. He spent a year and a half in the Windy City before the Bulls traded him to the Celtics in 2021, where Kornet made a name for himself, albeit a few years later.
Kornet is now preparing to play for his sixth team in the NBA, his first in the West. Soon after free agency began over the summer, he agreed to sign a four-year, $41 million deal with the Spurs. That's not too shabby for someone who was once fighting to prove himself in the NBA.
It's only the preseason (how many times have you heard that?), but the Kornet signing is already looking like a steal for San Antonio. He's a great rim-protector, passer, screen-setter, and rebounder. Spurs fans were desperate for the team to find a good Victor Wembanyama backup, and they found that (and more) in Kornet.
Luke Kornet is the Spurs' new backup center
San Antonio's hope, of course, is for Wembanyama to hit the 65-game mark at least this season, but it's reassuring to know that the team now has Kornet on the roster. If Wemby needs a night off or a breather in a close game, Mitch Johnson can turn to Kornet.
As we've seen a little bit during the preseason, there are times when Johnson can deploy a two-big lineup with Wembanyama and Kornet. Two seven-footers running a pick-and-roll? Yep!
New York and Chicago didn't see the vision for Kornet, but Boston did. He changed his game with the Celtics, which resulted in him becoming one of the best backup bigs in the league (and winning a championship!). Now he's playing behind someone who should easily be in the MVP conversation in his third season in the NBA.
Boston wanted Kornet to stay, as Brad Stevens said the team made an offer over the summer, but the allure of playing for the Spurs (and on a better contract) was too much for Kornet to turn down. He's come a long way since he suited up for the Bulls. The Kornet versus Daniel Gafford debate days are long gone. What a time that was.