The Dallas Mavericks could not have waited any longer to announce that forward Kristaps Porzingis would be held out of Tuesday's game versus the Oklahoma City Thunder, revealing just before tip-off that he would be scratched due to right knee soreness. Bakcup big man Maxi Kleber entered the Mavs' starting five in his place, making his sixth start of the season.
#Mavericks forward Kristaps Porzingis (right knee soreness) is now OUT for tonight’s game in Oklahoma City.
Maxi Kleber will start in place of Porzingis.
— Mavs PR (@MavsPR) January 1, 2020
Kristaps Porzingis will be joining Mavs teammates Tim Hardaway Jr. and Ryan Broekhoff in street clothes Tuesday, as the team played the Thunder shorthanded. The knee soreness marks just KP's second absence all season and first since Nov. 9.
Porzingis played in both legs of the Mavs' back-to-back on Saturday and Sunday, which could potentially have played a role in his absence.
The move appears to be a precautionary one, as Dallas does not play in a back-to-back for another 10 days. It's worth noting that Porzingis tore his left ACL while with the New York Knicks in 2018 and missed all of last season as he recovered from the injury.
Now 24 years old and in his first year with the Mavs, Porzingis has averaged 17.3 points and 9.4 rebounds per contest — on pace to set a new career high on the glass.
Kristaps has teamed up with MVP candidate Luka Doncic to help spur the Mavs to a 21-11 start to the year, which places them with the No. 5 seed in the Western Conference entering play Tuesday. Porzingis' next chance to return to action comes Thursday versus the Brooklyn Nets, although the team may opt to be cautious with the co-star of their franchise moving forward.
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