In another shocking deal ahead of the NBA Trade Deadline, the Dallas Mavericks have traded big man Kristaps Porzingis to the Washington Wizards in exchange for Spencer Dinwiddie. The Mavs also get Davis Bertans in the blockbuster deal.
This comes as a massive surprise for the Mavs considering how well Porzingis and Luka Doncic have been playing together this season. They break up a legitimate duo and in return, bring in a guard in Dinwiddie who wasn't exactly enjoying his time in DC, nor was he very well-liked. The former Net tried taking on more of a leadership role recently but the Wizards didn't respond kindly to it.
This is certainly a bit of a confusing move from the Mavs. Porzingis was easily their second-best player and an integral piece of the frontcourt. Bertans is nothing more than a shooter basically, while Dinwiddie isn't exactly going to help Dallas in terms of size. However, he's also missed over 20 games this season due to injury. Maybe the Mavs were just sick and tired of his health problems.
As for the Wizards, they were handed some brutal news recently as Bradley Beal is expected to miss the rest of the season due to a wrist injury, while his future with the team is a bit murky at the moment. But after acquiring a talent like Porzingis, you'd have to believe Beal will be keen on signing that $200+ million extension.