Throughout the offseason, there were a ton of NBA trade rumors about the Dallas Mavericks looking to make a deal involving big man, Kristaps Porzingis.
Things had not panned out as the team had hoped since he was acquired in a trade from the New York Knicks and they were looking to get out from under his contract.
At the trade deadline in March, there were rumors that the Mavericks offered Porzingis to the Golden State Warriors in a deal that would have centered around Kelly Oubre Jr. The rumors didn’t slow down in the offseason as Porzingis struggled mightily.
Much like his time in New York, he struggled to stay healthy with the Mavericks. His production also tanked in the postseason, as he struggled with his shot and looked more like an end of the rotation player than the second-best player on the team, which Dallas was expecting him to be.
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Kristaps Porzingis Experiencing Resurgence With Dallas Mavericks
Dallas lost two first-round series against the LA Clippers and Porzingis’ play was concerning. But, if you talk to Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, there is no truth to those rumors involving Porzingis.
“That’s not true. Why would I do that at all?” Cuban told NBA.com. “Trades like that, you always end up further behind. When you trade a superstar, you never get the best end of it.”
Cuban is certainly correct in that assessment. The Mavericks were never going to get what they perceive as fair value back in return for Porzingis given how low his value was around the league. His contract, along with his lackluster play and injury history, was tough selling points.
It looked like it would be much of the same at the start of the season, as Porzingis struggled mightily before sitting out a few games with an injury. Since then, he has looked more like the player the Mavericks thought they were getting from the Knicks.
“I’ve always believed that KP hasn’t played his best basketball yet. Now you’re seeing why we didn’t trade him,” Cuban said. “He’s a great player. He’s a good dude. All of my experiences with him have been positive. So why would we do that? But that’s NBA Twitter and that’s Mavs Twitter. That’s what they do. They’re probably trying to trade Luka right now.”
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Kristaps Porzingis Experiencing Resurgence With Dallas Mavericks
On the season Kristaps Porzingis is averaging 21.2 points, 8.2 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.5 blocks in 30.4 minutes per game. If he continues to produce at this level, the Dallas Mavericks are going to be a tough team to beat throughout the season.
