Portland Trail Blazers center Enes Kanter is going to the Western Conference semi-finals after his team took down the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round, and he owes this opportunity to the New York Knicks.
Kanter was part of the Knicks for the majority of this season before both sides agreed to part ways a couple of months ago. The Turkish big was then signed by the Blazers, where he became an integral part of the team's rotation.
After the Blazers' series-clinching win against OKC in Game 5, Kanter didn't forget to thank the Knicks for allowing him to play for another team before the end of the regular season.
Blazers' Enes Kanter after advancing to second round: "First, I would definitely like to thank the Knicks for waiving me." pic.twitter.com/U7z68BAqsf
— Ben Golliver (@BenGolliver) April 24, 2019
The eight-year veteran is undoubtedly having fun with the Blazers. He's been given a lot of opportunities to play, especially since the team's starting center, Jusuf Nurkic, went down with a season-ending injury.
Kanter was productive in the first round of the playoffs against OKC. He averaged 13.2 points and 10.2 rebounds in five games, proving that he can be effective on both ends of the floor.
While almost every news and discussions around the Blazers are about the stellar performances of Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum, Kanter seems to be pretty satisfied with his role. He may not be making the headlines, but he's helping the team win.
Something that he wasn't able to do with the Knicks.
Kanter will face a tougher challenge in the second round. The Denver Nuggets and the San Antonio Spurs have All-Star caliber frontcourt players that can definitely do damage in the post, and the responsibility of guarding either Nikola Jokic or LaMarcus Aldridge falls in his hands.
But as long as he feels that he has a chip on his shoulders, Kanter will be motivated to win.
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