KEY POINTS

  • Mark Cuban asks everyone to be patient and give Kristaps Porzingis time to fully recover
  • The Mavericks are slowly getting their groove back and are now at the 8th spot of the Western Conference
  • Porzingis can only get better, and his averages are proof he is on the right track

The Dallas Mavericks are not exactly in a spot where NBA experts forecasted them to be although there are several things to consider.

One of them is the late addition of Kristaps Porzingis who joined the team only in January. The Latvian is coming off knee surgery and got off to a slow start.

The Mavs have managed to claw their way back into the Magic 8 of the NBA Western Conference with Luka Doncic getting his groove back.

Porzingis is also not doing that bad, but rumors on a possible trade involving the 7-foot-3 player have emerged in recent weeks.

This raises the question of whether the Doncic-Porzingis tandem is worth keeping although some feel they could use a third star.

Regardless of all that Porzingis trade talk, the best person to shed more light on it is no other than Mavericks team owner Mark Cuban. He appeared on First Take and pointed out that there were a lot of things to consider during the first part of the 2020-21 NBA season.

Furthermore, it would be best to note that anything coming from front office personnel may not entirely be true. The reason behind this is that he may never speak on the matter truthfully, particularly NBA trade moves involving the franchise he owns.

Some will argue that it could be a way to alleviate the situation. But in the video, Cuban singled out the fact that it is not easy for a player to return from an injury.

An example he singled out is Kevin Durant, someone who has also been struggling for the Brooklyn Nets.

There is also the COVID-19 situation which made the first half of the season “weird.” Although Cuban did not immediately say that there is no truth to the Porzingis swap, this somehow sets the records straight on the 25-year-old’s status.

Kristaps Porzingis #6 of the Dallas Mavericks
Kristaps Porzingis #6 of the Dallas Mavericks Getty Images | Kevin C. Cox

In a previous post, it was reported that Porzingis himself was clueless about what is going on. Rather than dwell on that, the Latvian prefers to focus on playing ball and helping his team.

Even if his focus will be difficult due to these NBA trade rumors, he has managed to put up the numbers for the Mavs.

In 21 games, Porzingis has averaged 20.5 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 1.3 assists. These are his usual numbers despite his struggles.

Porzingis can only get better as the season progresses–either with the Mavs or some other team if any trade does go down before Mar. 25.