The future officially is now for the Mavericks.
The team and prized acquisition and restricted free agent Kristaps Porzingis signed the dotted line on Friday with the 7-3 center/forward accepting a multiyear offer that will give him and 20-year-old Luka Doncic the chance to grow into cornerstones of the franchise. The deal was widely reported to be for four years at the maximum allowable salary under terms of the NBA’s collective bargaining agreement.
Porzingis, 23, missed all of the 2018-19 season after knee surgery that cut short his 2017-18 season, in which he was named an all-star for the New York Knicks.
Porzingis had the option of signing a qualifying offer, but it didn’t take long for the team to come to terms with him on a long-term deal when negotiations were allowed to begin on July 1.
All contractual agreements were on hold until they could officially be signed anytime after 11 a.m. on July 6.
Porzingis is one of the most unique talents in the NBA with the ability to shoot 3-pointers and also have an impact around the rim both offensively and defensively. In 2017-18, he averaged 22.7 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.4 blocks in 32.4 minutes per game before he was injured. He also hit 39.5 percent of his 3-pointers.
And, he’s still very young. He will turn 24 on Aug. 2.
The Doncic-Porzingis pairing should be the new look of the franchise for years to come. After 21 seasons with Dirk Nowitzki as the face of the franchise, perhaps now the Mavericks will have a two-headed face of the franchise. The Mavericks made re-signing their own young free agents — Porzingis, Maxi Kleber, Dorian Finney-Smith and others — a top priority this summer.
Nobody can know for certain how well Porzingis will return from the knee injury. The Mavericks took an ultra-cautious approach after acquiring him in February, immediately saying that he would not play for the remainder of the season. When the 2019-20 season opens in October, it will be 20 months between regular-season games for Porzingis.
But assuming he returns to a form similar to what he flashed before the injury, the Mavericks clearly have a major piece for their present and future.
At the end of the season, coach Rick Carlisle said: “We got a trending young roster with two young stars in Kristaps Porzingis and Luka Doncic. We’re going to be ready to go. Luka, Kristaps, (Tim) Hardaway, (Dwight) Powell, (Jalen) Brunson,(Justin) Jackson – all these guys we’re moving forward with – these are all very good pieces to a puzzle we’re going to continue to solve.”
“We’ve got a lot to be optimistic about, but there’s an amazing amount of work that needs to happen this summer.”
The Mavericks have missed the playoffs in three consecutive seasons, but management is optimistic that the pairing of Porzingis and Doncic will give the team the continuity and the talent to be much more competitive this year and in seasons to come.
Twitter: @ESefko
Below is the official Mavericks’ news release:
MAVERICKS RE-SIGN KRISTAPS PORZINGIS
DALLAS – The Dallas Mavericks announced today that they have re-signed forward/center Kristaps Porzingis. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Porzingis (7-3, 240) was originally acquired by the Mavericks on January 31, 2019 along with guards Tim Hardaway Jr., Courtney Lee and Trey Burke, in exchange for guard Dennis Smith Jr., center DeAndre Jordan, guard/forward Wesley Matthews and two future first-round draft picks.
He holds career averages of 17.8 points, 7.1 rebounds, 2.0 blocks and 31.0 minutes per game in 186 games (185 starts). He averaged a career-high 22.7 points, 6.6 rebounds and a career-high 2.4 blocks in 48 games (all starts) for the Knicks during the 2017-18 season en route to being named a 2018 NBA All-Star. Porzingis suffered a torn left ACL against Milwaukee on Feb. 6, 2018, ending his 2017-18 campaign and he has not seen game action since the injury.
The former fourth overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft appeared in 72 games (all starts) for the Knicks as a rookie in 2015-16, averaging 14.3 points, a career-high 7.3 rebounds and 1.9 blocks in 28.4 minutes on his way to being named to the 2016 NBA All-Rookie First Team.
A native of Liepaja, Latvia, Porzingis began his professional career with Spain’s Cajasol Seville. He was a two-time recipient of the ACB All-Young Players Team (2014, 2015) and was also named a EuroCup Rising Star in 2015.
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