Dallas Mavericks: 5 reasons to be optimistic

4. The return of the Unicorn

The brightest spot of the Dallas Mavericks in’ 2019 (other than Luka Doncic, of course) was acquiring Kristaps Porzingis from the New York Knicks in exchange for DeAndre Jordan and Dennis Smith Jr.

Granted, Porzingis was not able to play a single minute in 2019 for the Mavericks, but his return will change the team for the better.

Since his entrance in 2015-16, Porzingis has seen a gradual decline in games played, but has shown improvement in his other stats. With an arguably more talented team around him in Dallas, Porzingis can afford to take his time in terms of attaining superstar status.

He is still in his early 20s and has plenty of time to prove himself. There will certainly be some rust on the gears, but that is to be expected.

The Zinger’s training has looked great so far and I can’t imagine there is a single NBA fan that doesn’t want him to come back healthy. Barring something unpredictable, Porzingis will be ready for opening night.

Even a sub-par performance from Porzingis will take the Mavericks to a new level in the upcoming season. With a chip on his shoulder, however, Kristaps will hope to make a statement this season to make the rest of the league take him— and Dallas— seriously.