The Dallas Mavericks look like they had the ingredients for something big when they acquired NBA star Kristaps Porzingis from the New York Knicks two years ago. At the time, everyone thought the Mavericks had stolen the Knicks, and it was difficult to argue against that.
Dallas sent out expired contracts at Wesley Matthews and DeAndre Jordan, as New York had its sights set on getting superstars at the free agency, Dennis Smith Jr. and two future choices in the first round. Matthews was purchased before the end of the season, Jordan was released and Smith was a mitigated disaster, further consolidating Dallas as the winner. However, things are starting to swing towards the Knicks.
The Mavericks have started to recover in recent weeks, but this coincided with Porzingis’ departure. Everything Knicks fans scoffed at saying about Porzingis is what Mavericks fans are saying now. It seems that the organization is also trying to leave Porzingis.
Rumors began to emerge that Dallas was assessing interest in Porzingis around the league. Mark Cuban closed those rumors, but when there is smoke there is usually fire, and this seems to be the case with Porzinigs.
RELATED: NBA trading rumors: 3 trading scenarios for Kristaps Porzingis that Mavs could consider
According Marc Spears of the undefeatedKristaps Porzingis is a player to keep an eye on Dallas and is buying for him with his salary, injury history and ‘high maintenance problems’ being cited as the reasons for this.
"No matter what you’re hearing, they say keep an eye on Kristaps Porzingis. He is somebody that Dallas is shopping. Because of salary, injuries, and as one scout said 'high maintenance issues.'"
– Marc J. Spears
(Via ESPN’s The Jump) pic.twitter.com/WZQQlDLgHc— NBA Central (@TheNBACentral) February 27, 2021
Although Porzingis made it clear to the Knicks that he didn’t want to stay there for long, these are the same problems that they had when committing to him for a long time. Since the start of the 2017-18 season, Porzingis has appeared in just 122 games. He missed the entire 2018-19 season recovering from a torn ACL and also tore the meniscus in 2020, so injury concerns are legitimate.
For Dallas, the long-term deal they agreed with Porzingis could quickly become a real problem, as they need to give extensions to Tim Hardaway Jr. and Luka Doncic in the coming seasons. Tying the maximum amount of money with a player who is unable to stay healthy is not ideal for team building.
RELATED: NBA commercial rumors: why the Dallas Mavericks should consider replacing Kristaps Porzingis
High maintenance problems also arose at the end of his tenure in New York. Porzingis receives some questionable advice and his brother seems to have a negative influence on him.
Despite being only 25, Kristaps Porzingis’ value decreases with each game he loses in another game. The Mavericks would be smart to investigate him and see what kind of packages they can receive for him, as they are likely to get worse the longer he stays around.