Dallas Mavericks: Kristaps Porzingis out vs. Oklahoma City Thunder

Dallas Mavericks star Kristaps Porzingis will be held out of the preseason opener against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Oct. 8. Get the latest here.

Dallas Mavericks fans are anxiously awaiting the debut of Kristaps Porzingis. They traded for the 2018 All-Star in January, but the 7’3 big man did not play at all last season. Porzingis was still recovering from his torn ACL suffered in Feb. 2018.

Mavs supporters cannot wait to see what the big man can do next to Luka Doncic. The reigning Rookie of the Year will be the best playmaker Porzingis has ever had on his team. The Unicorn is an outstanding shooter and could only improve playing next to Doncic.

Out vs. Thunder

The first preseason game is here, and fans were hoping to see Kristaps Porzingis take the court. The Dallas Mavericks are facing the Oklahoma City Thunder in Tulsa on Tuesday evening. Unfortunately, news came out hours before tipoff that KP will be out due to load management.

He is fully healthy, but the Mavs play again on Wednesday. Porzingis is expecting to suit up against the Pistons in Detroit on Oct. 9.

Mavericks fans will have to wait one more day to see the Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis connection. After eight-plus months, a single day should not be bad.

Mavs basketball is officially back. Tuesday is their first of five preseason games. The Mavericks play at home on Oct. 11 and 15. The regular season kicks off inside the American Airlines Center on Oct. 23 against the Washington Wizards. Expect a packed house for Porzingis’ first official game as a Maverick.

More Boban?

Dallas will be thin in the frontcourt on Tuesday. Both projected starting big man will be out. Dwight Powell has a hamstring injury. It will be interesting to see if Coach Carlisle prefers going small or fans get a ton of minutes from Boban Marjanovic. That is something to monitor against the Thunder.

The Smoking Cuban will be back with highlights and analysis from the game, so please return to the site.