Kristaps Porzingis has finally bounced back to become the player the Dallas Mavericks thought he could be upon returning from injury, playing a perfect complement to franchise gem Luka Doncic. The 7-foot-3 unicorn is excelling at all those attributes general manager Donnie Nelson saw in the once-injured big man, who missed all of last season with a torn ACL before returning and slowly adjusting to life as a secondary option for an NBA team.
Porzingis had played the role of top dog the minute Carmelo Anthony left town in 2017, but his injury cut an All-Star season short, forcing him to reassess everything once he was dealt by the New York Knicks.
The Latvian international struggled to be the Robin to Luka Doncic's Batman at first with poor shooting numbers and an inability to become that play finisher, but his February numbers suggest he has turned the corner.
In nine February games, Kristaps Porzingis averaged 25.2 points and 10.6 rebounds per game to along with 2.3 assists and 1.8 blocks. He shot the ball exceptionally well, drilling 48.3% of his shots from the floor and 39.8% of his triples, making 3.7 per game. He canned 88.1% of his shots at the foul line, going to the line 10 or more times in three of those nine games.
The 24-year-old also had six double-doubles in that stretch and pulled down nine or more rebounds in eight of them — simply outstanding for a player who had lacked rebounding consistency to stand up to his enormous 7-foot-3 frame.
Kristaps Porzingis seems to be continuing on the right trend in March, putting up 38 points, 13 rebounds, four assists, a steal, and five blocks in a resounding win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday.
The Mavs were only 7-5 in February, but they could be a feisty playoff threat with an MVP candidate in Doncic, an improving Porzingis, and a hot-shooting Seth Curry. Most importantly, Porzingis' newfound willingness to up his 3-point shooting volume as a stretch 5 has greatly aided the Mavs' outside shooting, as he is dealing some serious damage from the outside. He has buried five or more treys in a game in four of his last 10 outings.
The same could be said of his prowess as a rim protector on the defensive end. Porzingis has blocked five shots in a game twice in his last five games and blocked three or more four times in his last six games.
So long as he keeps up the same pace for the remainder of the season, Kristaps Porzingis and Luka Doncic won't have a problem saving Gotham City from any villains trying to take away their rightful seed in the Western Conference playoff picture.
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