While Kristaps Porzingis will become a restricted free agent on Sunday, the Dallas Mavericks aren’t planning on letting him go anywhere.
It was reported on Tuesday that the Mavericks will offer Poringis a max contract (five-years, $158 million) when free agency begins.
Porzingis missed all of the 2018-19 season with a torn ACL. While he didn’t play, he was still involved in one of the season’s biggest moments when he was acquired by the Mavericks from the New York Knicks in a trade deadline blockbuster.
Despite that, it’s not surprising that the Mavericks would want keep Porzingis. First of all, they gave up an awful lot to get him. Secondly, he’s only 24 and has skills seemingly tailor made for the modern NBA. He’s 7-foot-3, but has range.
When he last played, Porzingis averaged 22.7 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 2.4 blocks per game. In that 2017-18 season, Porzingis shot 43.9% from the field, 39.5% on threes, and 79.3% on free throws.