Kristaps Porzingis always heard about Thanksgiving but never about the turkey.

Next Thursday, as the Knicks fly back from their upcoming four-game road trip, Porzingis will experience his first Thanksgiving in his Westchester home. His mother, Ingrida, his father, Talis, and two brothers will be there for the feast.

There is much for which to be thankful as the 7-foot-3 rookie has captured New York’s imagination with his towering game and engaging personality. A Latvian legend is being born right before the Garden’s eyes.

“I’ve heard of it before, but I had no idea about the turkey, cranberry and that kind of stuff,’’ Porzingis told The Post after his 29-point, 11-rebound historic outing Tuesday night. “Now I’m reading and knowing this culture and the holidays. As far as I know, it’s a holiday to be with family and eating a lot. It’s something I like.’’

Porzingis smiles because he always smiles in the Knicks’ locker room these days. On Tuesday, with Hornets associate head coach Patrick Ewing and Willis Reed looking on, Porzingis, 20, became the youngest player in franchise history to post a 25-and-10 outing, becoming as recognizable a Knicks star as Carmelo Anthony after just 12 games.

Porzingis, who has been living in White Plains with his parents since September, plans to stay in on Turkey Day.

“We’re going to try to celebrate the American way and maybe we’ll have some turkey,’’ Porzingis said. “We’ll see what mom cooks.’’

Porzingis also celebrated a Latvian holiday on Wednesday.

On Monday, Porzingis and Knicks teammate Kyle O’Quinn appeared at the Boys & Girls Club in Lodi, NJ, to give holiday meals to kids and turkeys to needy families.

Porzingis assisted in dishing out food for 250 kids. At first, he was spooning out spaghetti and meatballs, but got so involved interacting with the kids, he couldn’t keep up. The line slowed to a crawl and the organizers gave him the easier chore of handing out juice boxes. One kid asked Porzingis if he was the tallest man in the world.

He only could laugh. “I don’t think so,’’ Porzingis said.

Porzingis’ parents are tall, but not giants. Ingrida is an impressive 6-foot-1, while Talis stands 6-foot-4. Both played on versions of the old USSR national teams.

Porzingis’ parents have been in town the last 2 ¹/₂ months, but must leave the US because their visa expires in early December. They hope to return in January. According to a source, his parents are permitted in the US less than six months in a given 12-month period.

His parents won’t be around for Christmas, but Porzingis said having them nearby at the start of his NBA career has been crucial.

“For sure it was important,’’ Porzingis said. “My mom takes cares of everything. Dad just loves basketball. He watches every game he can. He knows basketball, always at the home games and they’ve traveled to Boston [in preseason] and Washington.

“They like it here. The only difficult thing is the language for them. My dad is learning English. Mom doesn’t know English. She speaks Russian.’’

According to Porzingis, his mother can be found in Brooklyn often going grocery shopping in the plentiful Russian grocery stores. With concerns over his skinny frame, Porzingis put on 11 pounds since the NBA summer league in July and currently weighs about 242 pounds.

“I will often ask Kris if he wants to go out for a steak dinner in Manhattan at Smith & Wollensky’s and he declines,’’ Porzingis’ agency executive Daniel Rohme told The Post. “He’ll turn it down because he doesn’t like passing on his mom’s cooking. He’ll just say come on over and eat.’’

Porzingis admits he has spent little time exploring Manhattan because of the hectic schedule. He’s only in the city for the games. At Monday’s event, after he finished talking with the kids, Porzingis went downstairs to help out 75 lower-income families. Porzingis’ agency and Stop & Shop split the cost as cans of cranberry sauce, yams, corn and boxes of stuffing were given out.

Porzingis delighted some of the Hispanic families by speaking Spanish — a language in which he is fluent after two seasons in the Spanish League. Porzingis got a workout, too, assigned to lifting and handing each family a 20-pound turkey.

Next Thursday, Porzingis will enjoy his own turkey feast with his entire family, eager to celebrate an American holiday for the first time.