Two years ago, the Dallas Mavericks and New York Knicks completed an NBA blockbuster trade. Budding All-Star Kristaps Porzingis was sent to Dallas, along with Tim Hardaway Jr., Courtney Lee and Trey Burke, in exchange for Wesley Matthews, DeAndre Jordan, Dennis Smith Jr., a 2021 unprotected first-round draft pick and a 2023 protected first-round draft pick.
From the very beginning, the Mavericks looked like they fleeced the Knicks. New York had just traded away their supposed franchise cornerstone for nothing more than hopes and dreams in the way of future cap space and first-round picks that many believed would be far from the lottery.
Fast forward to today, and the deal doesn’t seem as lopsided as it once was. The Mavericks are playing better basketball as of late, but are still under the .500 mark at 14-15, in 9th place in the Western Conference. The Knicks have a comparable 15-16 record and are in 7th place in the Eastern Conference.
Things have not gone according to plan for Dallas thus far, and as a result, they could look to shake things up. According to Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report, sources say they are quietly shopping Porzingis.
“They’ve definitely sniffed around on him,” an assistant general manager told B/R. “They’re taking the temperature, because they know at some point it’s gonna come around.”
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Mavericks’ owner Mark Cuban has denied the report, while Ian Begley of SNY has reported that the team reached out to the Golden State Warriors about a Porzingis deal.
Where there is smoke, there is usually fire. It would be surprising to some to see the Mavericks move Porzingis out of town so quickly, but there is some sense to it all. These are three reasons why the Mavericks should considering trading Porzingis away.
