Dallas Mavericks: 5 offseason roster moves they need to make

Dallas Mavericks offseason move No. 4: Trade Kristaps Porzingis

As mentioned earlier, Porzingis expressed his displeasure at how he was used in the postseason. It appears that he was frustrated with the way that Doncic tried to do it all by himself, not involving his teammate. Given that Porzingis had five and a half fewer shots per game in the playoffs, there could be fire under that smoke.

Another problem for the Mavericks is that Porzingis is currently their highest player. He is due $31.6 million next season, $33.8 million in 2022-23, and has a player option worth $36.0 million in the 2023-24 season. This is a huge amount of the cap taken up by a player unhappy with their role.

However, the biggest problem for the Mavericks is that Pozingis’ 7’3″ 240-pound frame is struggling to stand up to the rigors of an NBA season. He has missed 152 of a possible 482 games so far in his six-year career. This means he has been sidelined for more than 31 percent of his career.

The Mavericks’ best option for trading Porzingis is to send him to a team like the OKC Thunder, Houston Rockets, or Orlando Magic who are looking to rebuild. This means they can afford to take on Porzingis’ salary, even if he misses significant time. As they would be looking to get something back, a third team may need to be involved.