On Thursday afternoon, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski dropped one of his famous bombs, noting that Kristaps Porzingis had agreed to a deal with Dallas. It's not certain when the seven-footer will be able to suit up for the Mavs, as he's currently dealing with a knee injury.

Some teams might feel leery about taking on an injured player, but the Mavs are not that concerned. It seems this trade is geared towards the team's future.

As part of this deal, the Knicks sent Porzingis, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Courtney Lee to the Mavs. In return, Dallas sent Dennis Smith Jr, DeAndre Jordan and Wesley Matthews to New York. The Knicks also secured two future first-round picks from the Mavericks.

Dallas is going hard in the paint for their future. According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, the Mavs are looking to build around a core of Porzingis and Luka Doncic, and they're confident it can work long-term. Charania also noted that Porzingis is “really fond of Doncic and Dirk Nowitzki,” which should make his transition a bit easier.

Article Continues Below
More Dallas Mavericks News
NBA great Kevin Garnett is honored for being selected to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team during halftime in the 2022 NBA All-Star Game at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse
Kevin Garnett’s hyped reaction to looming Bronny James-Cooper Flagg showdownAbdullah Imran ·
Duke Blue Devils forward Cooper Flagg (2) dribbles the ball against the Mount St. Mary's Mountaineers during the first half in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at Lenovo Center.
Will Cooper Flagg be Mavericks’ point guard until Kyrie Irving returns from injury?Joey Mistretta ·
Mavericks Luka Doncic on left, Mavericks Cooper Flagg on right, stop light in the middle on red.
Why the Cooper Flagg-Luka Doncic comparisons must come to an endJoey Mistretta ·
mavericks, dallas mavericks, d'angelo russell
The player Dallas Mavericks must avoid in 2025 NBA free agencyGarrett Kerman ·
Cooper Flagg talks to the media during the 2025 NBA Draft Combine at Marriott Marquis Chicago.
Mavericks’ Cooper Flagg reveals his favorite WNBA player’s gameAbdullah Imran ·
Dallas Mavericks point guard Kyrie Irving talks with Dallas Wings guard Paige Bueckers (5) after the game against the Indiana Fever at the American Airlines Center.
Wings’ Paige Bueckers reveals how Kyrie Irving inspired ‘unguardable’ motivationJoey Mistretta ·

“We wouldn't have made the deal if we thought he was going to walk obviously,” Nowitzki told ESPN. “… Hopefully he's going to like what he sees and he's going to get healthy and play well for us. We'll go from there.”

Doncic, who's viewed as one of the NBA's fastest-rising stars, is excited to play alongside Porzingis:

“He's such an amazing player, so this could be a good thing,” Doncic said. “He's big, he can shoot, he can rebound, he can do a lot of things. I think he can be one of the best players in this league.”

Porzingis, who's expected to be re-evaluated sometime this month, hasn't played a single game this season due to his ACL injury. The Latvian-born big man made 48 appearances with the Knicks last season, racking up averages of 17.8 points on 43.7 percent shooting from the field (36.1 percent from beyond the arc), 7.1 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 2.4 blocks and just under one steal (0.8) in 32.4 minutes per outing.

The Mavs (23-28 and 3rd in the Southwest Division standings) will be back in action on Saturday, when they'll travel to Cleveland for a matchup against the Cavs. Tip-off inside Quicken Loans Arena is set for 7:30 p.m. ET.