Kristaps Porzingis jumps into fourth in jersey sales this season
With the season at its midway point, New York Knicks rookie power forward Kristaps Porzingis has made an impact on the court, but off of it as well.
The fourth overall pick of the 2015 NBA draft has the fourth best selling jersey in the league based on sales from October through December at the NBA's official online store, the league announced on Wednesday.
Porzingis, who is the only rookie among the top 15 best sellers, only trailed Stephen Curry, LeBron James and Kobe Bryant.
Among the top 10 were two Oklahoma City Thunder players --Kevin Durant (No. 5) and Russell Westbrook (No. 7) -- and two Chicago Bulls: Derrick Rose (No. 6) and Jimmy Butler (No. 10).
Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving, who has only played in 13 games this season, and Houston Rockets forward James Harden, finished eighth and ninth in jersey sales, respectively.
Butler makes his debut as a member of the best selling jersey list, and Indiana Pacers forward Paul George is at a personal high at No. 12, no doubt aided by playing his first full season since switching from jersey No. 24 to 13.
The most popular team in merchandise is, not surprisingly, the reigning NBA champion Golden State Warriors. The Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Lakers and New York Knicks are among the top five teams, in that order.
Through 43 games, Porzingis, a 20-year-old from Latvia, has been averaging 14 points per game, which is third among rookies. His eight rebounds a game puts him only behind Karl-Anthony Towns. He leads all rookies in blocks (2.0 per game average) and free throw shooting percentage (85 percent).
