During the 2018-19 season, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban made a big gamble by acquiring Kristaps Porzingis from the New York Knicks. The All-Star big man was recovering from an ACL tear, so some Mavs fans were worried that the franchise was trading for a guy who wasn't going to be able to perform at a star level anymore.
However, before the 2019-20 season was suspended in March, Porzingis showed Mavs nation that Cuban and his staff made the right decision to not only trade for him but also to sign him to a contract extension. Dallas gave Porzingis a five-year, $158.3 million deal last summer.
During an interview with Steve Serby of the New York Post, Cuban spoke about Porzingis' desire to be great for the Mavs.
“I really like KP. He loves the game of basketball. He works his ass off,” Mark Cuban said.
“He wants to be one of the best players in the game and puts in the time. And most importantly he wants to win. He will put what the team needs ahead of stats or individual accolades to help us win. What I like best about KP is that he has that one extra level at crunch time that all great players have.”
The Mavs will be among the 22 teams partaking in the “bubble” games in Orlando, Florida. Dallas won 40 games before Rudy Gobert's positive COVID-19 test forced the season to be halted.
Kristaps Porizingis appeared in 51 games for the Mavs before games were suspended. The Unicorn averaged 19.2 points, 9.5 rebounds and 1.7 assists while shooting 42.0 percent from the field, 34.9 percent from beyond the arc and 77.6 percent from the free-throw line.
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