It wasn’t that long ago when the Dallas Mavericks bet all their cards on forming a European connection between Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis as cornerstones of the franchise.

But looks like the Mavs no longer believe Porzingis is a suitable Robin for Luka’s Batman since they are quietly offering The Unicorn to other teams ahead of the NBA trade deadline next month.

There’s already trouble in paradise brewing in The Big D, as the Latvian star already unfollowed the Mavericks on Instagram.

While there’s a good chance people are reading too much into it, a player unfollowing his team on IG nowadays is as good as a sign that he no longer feels welcome with the franchise.

From a numbers standpoint, it’s baffling why Dallas is giving up on Porzingis this early, considering he is still notching decent numbers of 20.5 points on 47.3 percent shooting from the field and 35.2 percent from deep, along with 8.2 rebounds and 1.3 assists.

However, his inability to stay healthy as well as his lackluster defensive effort has the Mavs on the fence about whether or not he’s still worth keeping around in the long run.

Porzingis has only suited up in 18 of Dallas’ 31 games so far this season while swatting a career-low 1.6 blocks.

The Mavericks currently rank 24th in overall defensive rating this season, and a lot of that has to do with their weak interior presence. It’s unfair to solely blame Porzingis for that, but standing 7-foot-3 makes him a glaring target for his team’s inefficiencies on that end.

Plus, the Mavs are about 11 points better defensively whenever Porzingis takes a breather, so there’s that.

With the deadline less than a month away, it will be tricky to move the Latvian’s $158.2 million contract, which nets him $29.4 million this year.

Still, let’s not forget that one-time All-Star is just 25 years old and is a prototype for what modern-day bigs should play like, despite not being as agile as in years past. The other teams will still pay a premium to avail of his services, something that the Mavs understand and wish to capitalize on.

Let’s have a look at the best deals that other teams could offer the Dallas Mavericks for Kristaps Porzingis.

 

Golden State Warriors

The Trade: Andrew Wiggins and two second-round picks

Kristaps Porzingis, Warriors, Mavs, NBA trade rumors

The Warriors are reportedly the first team that the Mavs brass reached out to gauge interest for a Porzingis trade.

After all, the injury-ravaged Dubs are still fighting tooth-and-nail for a playoff spot this season and are always aggressive during the deadline. While Golden State can also play around with the contracts of Kelly Oubre, Eric Paschall, or even James Wiseman, it’s Wig’s salary that makes the most sense to dump, since he and Porzingis will make around the same this year.

Dallas could welcome a much-improved swingman of Wiggins’ caliber, who has become a good two-way player in his stint in Oakland so far.

Porzingis would give the Dubs some much-needed size up front, especially with rookie center  Wiseman still recovering from injury. We all know Kristaps isn't bashful shooting threes so he’ll fit right with coach Steve Kerr’s system.

The Mavs would likely push for a first-rounder in any trade for Porzingis. But the Warriors already gave their 2021 first-rounder to the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Mavs might have to wait longer for a return of investment for Porzingis so they’ll probably settle for at least two second-round picks instead.

 

Boston Celtics

The Trade: Kemba Walker, Daniel Theis, and a second-round pick for Porzingis, Dwight Powell

Celtics, Knicks, Kristaps Porzingis, Jaylen Brown

Another struggling team who could make a run for Porzingis to try and turn things around is the Celtics. After starting the season as a top-3 team in the East, Boston has been left behind by the much-improved teams in the division and is now out of the playoff picture.

Like the Mavs, the Cs need a superior big man as Tristan Thompson and Daniel Theis are just not cutting it. Porzingis could thrive in Beantown and play a similar role to what Al Horford provided for Brad Stevens a few seasons ago. Powell would be a decent back-up and is already familiar with KP.

Plus, it seems they are no longer as high on keeping Kemba Walker around following his inconsistent showing this season.

The Mavs, meanwhile, would probably be curious about a possible Walker-Luka Doncic backcourt. Again, the Mavs would probably want a first-rounder for Porzingis but Danny Ainge would probably balk at such a request.

 

Atlanta Hawks

The Trade: Clint Capela, John Collins, and Tony Snell for Porzingis and Willie Cauley-Stein

Trae Young, Hawks, Luka Doncic, Mavs

John Collins is due for a big payday next season, something that Dallas can give him if they can unload KP’s big contract to ATL. The same goes for the Hawks, who are enjoying what Capela is giving to them right now but might want to save some money by cutting ties with him.

With Porzingis, the Hawks will get a legitimate frontcourt scoring threat who could hopefully get along with their star Trae Young better than Collins can.

The Mavericks, on the other hand, probably just want a traditional center who rebounds and blocks shots a high-rate and hopefully, could stay healthy. Capela ticks all those boxes, while Collins gives them another young and athletic forward who could be Luka Doncic’s number two.

WCS and Snell are throw-ins in this deal but could actually serve as decent back-ups for both sides. It’s a win-win situation for both the Hawks and the Mavs if they can somehow pull this off.