Dallas Mavericks: Kristaps Porzingis is ready to dominate next season

Dallas Mavericks forward Kristaps Porzingis is excited to return to the court and exceed his previous All-Star level next season.

Dallas Mavericks fans will look back on the last year as the time the organization went from rebuilding to competing. It started with trading for Luka Doncic on draft night. The Mavs sealed their second building block on Jan. 31 in a blockbuster deal to acquire Kristaps Porzingis.

The two trades cost the Mavericks four first-round picks, but it gave them two All-Star level talents under 25 years old. That is a massive shift for a team that has missed the playoffs three consecutive seasons.

There are questions about Porzingis, though. He tore his ACL in February of 2018. The Unicorn has still not played in an NBA game some 14 months later.

He is also a restricted free agent this offseason and facing a difficult decision. The Mavericks are going to offer him a max deal. Porzingis could decide to accept the qualifying offer and be an unrestricted free agent in 2020.

Mavs fans wondering about his talent should look no further than this quote from Dirk Nowitzki after the trade was made courtesy of Dwain Price.

Ready to dominate

Dallas supporters also may have missed this video. Last summer, Kristaps Porzingis did a piece for the Players’ Tribune about his ACL rehab. Fans can watch the full video here.

The Unicorn discusses his goals when he returns to the NBA including becoming the MVP and Defensive Player of the Year. Those are lofty heights, but Porzingis was playing fantastic at the time of his injury. He was averaging 22.7 points, 6.6 rebounds, 1.9 3-pointers made, and 2.4 blocks in 32.4 minutes a night as a 22-year-old. Fans can see his highlights from that season below.

Kristaps will be 24 on opening night in 2019. He could legitimately be better than the last time fans saw him in an NBA game. That is scary to think about for opposing teams.

Porzingis is 7’3 and shot 39.5 percent on his 3-pointers in 2017-2018. He is the ultimate stretch big man that can both protect the rim and shoot the lights out. Get ready for a fun season watching Luka and Kristaps share the court in Dallas.

Final thoughts

Dallas Mavericks forward Kristaps Porzingis is ready to dominate the NBA next season. His goal is to become the MVP and Defensive Player of the Year.

Mavs fans cannot wait to see Porzingis on the court. They hoped he would suit up at some point after the trade, but it never happened. Supporters will be circling that first preseason game on the calendar just to get a glimpse of Kristaps Porzingis playing for the Mavericks.

Dallas Mavericks fans should prepare for an exhilarating offseason as well. There will be plenty of news, rumors, and analysis, so do not miss a moment of the coverage at The Smoking Cuban.