One of the most hotly anticipated games on the NBA calendar Thursday comes when Kristaps Porzingis and the Dallas Mavericks travel to take on the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. For Porzingis, it will be his first contest as an opponent on the Garden floor, having been dealt from the organization at the end of January in a blockbuster deal.
The reaction that he receives is up for debate, but TNT analyst Channing Frye believes that if the New York faithful want to shower Porzingis — who reportedly asked to be traded — with jeers, they should do it for a different reason.
“They have every right to boo him, but boo him because he’s on the other team,’’ Frye told The New York Post. “ Not because he wanted to get out of that situation. As you see, most people don’t want to be in that situation right now. Boo him because he’s a Maverick and not because he didn’t want to be on the Knicks.’’
Porzingis sat out the remainder of the 2018-19 year following his trade as he rehabbed his left knee, which sustained a torn ACL during his time with the Knicks. To kick off this year, the 7-foot-3 Latvian star has averaged 18.3 points and 7.9 rebounds per game as Dallas acclimates him to their system.
The former blossoming face of the franchise comes to town as New York enters play with a 2-9 record.
Three of the four players acquired in the January deal are no longer with the organization.
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