Advertisement

Mavericks: Kristaps Porzingis exits early with knee soreness vs. Pistons

Tyler Watts
Tyler Watts

The Smoking Cuban

Dallas Mavericks Kristaps Porzingis Mandatory Credit: Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports

The Dallas Mavericks were without star Kristaps Porzingis for three straight games. He sprained his ankle against the Lakers on April 22. Dallas did not want to rush the Unicorn back. He worked out a few times but missed three games before returning against the Detroit Pistons on April 29.

Porzingis came out strong and was looking healthy. He had five points in the first quarter but struggled on the glass. The Mavericks were playing without Luka Doncic and needed KP to step up. Things went from bad to worse for Dallas, though.

Porzingis exited with 4:20 left in the third quarter for what seemed like a rest. The Mavericks were quick to rule him out for the remainder of the game with right knee soreness. Just ten games remain in the regular season, so it is concerning news. Here is a closer look at KP’s play in his return and what the injury could mean going forward.

Dallas Mavericks star Kristaps Porzingis returns before exiting with knee soreness

Porzingis was playing well on Thursday night. He went to work in the post and made the smaller defender pay in the clip below.

KP finished with 11 points and one rebound in 21 minutes of action. He was five of 11 from the field and connected on one of his three 3-point tries. The Mavericks were watching his minutes closely after missing three straight games. He played just 21 before exiting with knee soreness.

The injury is an unfortunate one for Porzingis. He had surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee in the offseason. The Unicorn also missed ten straight games in the 2019-2020 season with knee soreness. He tore his ACL in his left knee. Stay tuned for updates on Kristaps Porzingis’ latest injury. The team has ten games in the next 17 days to close the season. No word yet on how much time KP will miss.

Keep it locked to The Smoking Cuban for all the latest, including Dallas Mavericks analysis fans crave.

Tyler Watts

Tyler Watts

Tyler is an NBA Lead Editor at FanSided. He has been covering the league since 2016. He regularly writes about all 30 NBA franchises and the WNBA. He has seen every game of Luka Doncic's NBA career, and his work has been featured on Bleacher Report and Fantasy Pros. In his spare time, he enjoys going for walks, heading to games, or watching movies with his wife.