Kristaps Porzingis has been playing really well for the Dallas Mavericks in recent games, fulfilling the role the Mavs have envisioned for him when they traded for him in 2019.

Clearly, the Mavs are a better team with Porzingis playing a bigger role alongside Luka Doncic. KP has had trouble staying on the floor because of the plethora of injuries he has sustained over the course of his career. However, he has proven to be one of the best bigs in the league when he is healthy.

Now, he is tallying numbers close to his best years in New York Knicks uniform. Jason Kidd would be really proud of this growth. With Doncic as the franchise cornerstone, the Latvian has also shown he can still perform at the biggest stage.

But just how big is Porzingis' impact to the Mavs? Can he finally help lead them past the first round of the playoffs? Let's dive in.

Why Kristaps Porzingis Is The Most Important Player For The Mavs

3. Kristaps Porzingis as a big in five-out offense

Ever since Doncic rose to stardom, his floor general skills has improved exponentially, but it could reach its utmost potential with a five-out style of offense. These units were not advisable in the previous seasons because Porzingis had trouble protecting the rim and crashing the boards as the only big man on the court. Their excellence on offense exposes their defensive weaknesses with that lineup combination.

If Kidd could insert Porzingis with four wings and guards come playoff time, the Mavs could be a dark horse contender in the Western Conference. Players like Tim Hardaway Jr., Dorian Finney-Smith and Reggie Bullock would be ecstatic in this kind of offense because they will receive a ton of wide open 3-point shots every single game.

Even if Porzingis could excel offensively, he must also anchor the paint and provide a hefty presence as a rim protector. He is very capable of doing this, highlighted by his consistent swatted shot numbers every season. He just needs to stifle some shots and not get beat on screen-and-roll schemes of their opponents for him to be effective as a consistent center.

2. Second star is necessary for a serious contender

In the 2021 NBA Playoffs, Porzingis tallied an abysmal 13.1 points and 5.4 rebounds on 29.6% shooting from behind the arc. These numbers are disappointing because the Mavs paid him over $29 million in salary last season. Dallas knows he is capable of competing with the other star bigs in the conference such as Nikola Jokic or Anthony Davis.

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There was a playoff game where he scored 34 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, but there were also instances where he would disappear by scoring single digits. Porzingis needs to be consistent offensively and defensively to complement the phenomenal performances of Doncic.

If Porzingis can match the impact and numbers of the his counterparts in a series, it will lighten the load on Doncic and further enhance the confidence of their role players as well.

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1. Improved confidence of role players

Since Porzingis struggled in some of the biggest games in the past, the role players were forced to do more than what was expected of them to provide Doncic with ample help offensively.

As proven recently, though, when Porzingis tallies his usual statistics, the confidence rises to another level for the role players because defenses also need to focus on defending KP on any area of the floor.

For instance in their game against the Los Angeles Clippers recently, Porzingis was dangerous on the mid-post area because he could create offense for himself and others. Moreover, the opening he received was because of the attention Doncic attracts in pick and roll situations. With Porzingis possibly being an effective shot creator as well, their shooters and other big men will have an increased confidence level come playoff time.

Dallas is currently fourth in the Western Conference with a 10-7 record, and they could likely hold this position until April. For the Mavs to have consistent success, though, Porzingis is the intricate piece that needs to be healthy and constantly be a threat on both sides of the court.