The Dallas Mavericks' Kristaps Porzingis deal with the Washington Wizards last February came as one of the biggest shockers of the trade deadline. After all, there were no indications (at least publicly) that the Mavs were looking to deal the Latvian big man.

However, they pulled the trigger on the deal that sent Porzingis and a second-round pick to the Wizards in exchange for Spencer Dinwiddie and Davis Bertans.

While the deal was met with mixed reaction–with some saying that the Mavs made the right move to deal KP's monstrous contract and others thinking Dallas lost after parting ways with a superstar talent–Tim McMahon of ESPN explained the reported logic behind the deal.

Apparently, while the Mavs acquired two big contracts as well, they felt that they are easier to move than Porzingis. Not to mention that they didn't have to attach a first-rounder to execute the trade. There is also Dallas' belief that the Porzingis acquisition and partnership with Luka Doncic just wasn't working after they gave it another try.

“So the Washington thing came together. And the Mavericks basically got to the point of ‘Hey, financially it's a wash, but it's two smaller contracts that would be easier to move.' And they felt K.P. was kind of in the way and those two guys could fill roles off the bench, so they pulled the trigger as soon as they found a deal where they didn't have to give up a first round pick,” McMahon explained on The Lowe Post podcast, per Real GM.

“A lot of that was the fit with K.P. wasn't there. It doesn't mean Porzingis necessarily did anything wrong. The Mavericks took a huge swing and a miss on him. It didn't work out.”

True enough, Kristaps Porzingis' time with the Mavs alongside Luka Doncic is one of the biggest “What ifs” in team history. He was just never able to be healthy enough to develop that expected chemistry with Doncic, although they did show flashes of what they can do together when they click.

Mark Cuban and the Mavs' front-office probably hoped that the 2021-22 season would be the year they see the two dominate, but KP was still unable to string a solid run of healthy games as he's often in an out of the lineup.

Of course Porzingis is not one to blame for that. He was actually having a great year with the Mavs, but when the opportunity came for the team to hit the reset button and acquire two players who'll be readily available, the Texas franchise just couldn't say no.

So far, the acquisition of Dinwiddie and Bertans has worked wonder for Dallas–with the former being particularly huge for the team in their recent wins against the Golden State Warriors. They remain a one-star team, but hopes are high the current squad could make a deep run in the playoffs.

As for Porzingis and the Wizards, there were initial fears he could be shut down for the rest of the season as he rehabs from his injury. But by the looks of it and based on the current messaging from the team, there is still a possibility that he suits up in the final stretch of the season. Unfortunately, there is no specific timetable for his return and it seems the Washington franchise is not rushing him back.