The Dallas Mavericks made the second-biggest move of this year’s NBA Trade Deadline when they opted to send Kristaps Porzingis to the Washington Wizards.
Although Porzingis has frequently been mentioned as a tradeable piece over the past couple of years, that sort of chatter had quieted this season. Then, suddenly – he was gone.
This week, Mavs star Luka Doncic revealed how he learned of Porzingis getting dealt.
To hear him tell it, the move was very unexpected.
“It was surprising. I was actually taking a nap and I woke up and saw (Porzingis) was traded.”
One-on-one with Luka Doncic on his technical fouls, the Porzingis trade and more: pic.twitter.com/0ag7kwhfYd
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“It was surprising. I was actually taking a nap and I woke up and saw KP was traded,” Doncic said.
Not long after the trade occurred, Doncic offered his blunt reaction to it.
“Obviously, we’re going to miss KP,” he said. “We were building something great here. It didn’t obviously work out. I wish him the best, and we’ve got two new guys who are welcome. Bertans is a great shooter. Dinwiddie can put the ball on the floor and he can score. The NBA is a business.
“He went through a lot with the injuries. I think this year, he was way better. Like I said, the NBA is a business, and I wish him the best in the future.”
Porzingis was and continues to be a very talented player, but there were two major strikes against him during his Dallas stint. The first, obviously, was his inability to stay healthy. The next and more damning issue, though – the fact that he and Doncic hated each other.
It will be interesting to see how things go for Doncic and Porzingis over the next few years.
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If Porzingis turns his career around, stays healthy and does something meaningful with the Wizards, then people will look at his Mavericks run through a slightly more sympathetic lens.
Should Porzingis continue to be the player he has been for the last few years, then he will likely end up going down in history as one of the more disappointing stars of his generation.
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Charles Kruger has been credentialed to cover two Super Bowls, four NBA Finals, and one World Series. A 20-year veteran in the sports world, he has sources spanning the NBA, MLB, NFL, UFC and NASCAR. Currently residing in Los Angeles, Calif., he is Game 7’s go-to source for rumors surrounding the Lakers, Clippers and Dodgers.
