There will be nothing more painful for a Knicks fan regarding the Orlando restart than watching the Dallas Mavericks compete.
The resurgent Mavericks, who owned a 40-27 record when the season was paused in March because of the coronavirus, will boast the 7-foot-3 Kristaps Porzingis – and even a rejuvenated Tim Hardaway Jr.
Knicks resident Leon Rose and executive VP William Wesley are now running the Knicks and they are in place to prevent what happened to Porzingis, who asked for a trade from the franchise 17 months ago.
It’s hard to imagine that Wesley would have allowed Porzingis and his agent/brother Janis to become so miserable that they’d want out of New York City. It’s hard to imagine that Rose and Wesley would not have made at least one trip to Latvia or Spain to visit the Porzingis brothers in the 2018 offseason once they realized the brothers’ disenchantment with the franchise.
Porzingis is back with the Mavericks now after having spent most of the coronavirus pandemic in his native Latvia, where the infection rate has been relatively low, according to Johns Hopkins.
Being in Latvia gave Porzingis an edge in working out in gyms that were not closed by the government, as many were shuttered in the United States. While the Knicks never appreciated Porzingis going back to Europe during the offseason, it was wise for him to do so during the coronavirus break.
“I knew if we had the chance [to resume the season], I had to be ready physically, mentally and in every other aspect, so I stayed ready the whole time,” Porzingis told reporters on a conference call Saturday in his first remarks since the shutdown. “I feel great physically, super excited. Mentally, I’m there. I was able to heal little things I had going on, and I’m super excited to get back on the court. Let’s hope it all works out and we can enjoy some basketball.”
As of Sunday, Latvia had 1,122 positive coronavirus cases (0.059 percent of the population) and 30 deaths caused by the illness, according to Johns Hopkins.
Porzingis is no stranger to layoffs, having broken a 20-month layoff to rehab his torn ACL over the last couple years.
“Now I know what works and what doesn’t work for me,” Porzingis said. “(I’m) trying to find the optimal shape that I need to be in to be able to play at the highest level and to feel the best I can on the court. The extra time just gave all of us more time to recover from little things that we all have going on.”
Porzingis, the Knicks’ fourth-overall pick in the 2015 draft, was the original “unicorn,” as dubbed by Kevin Durant. He’s a solid 3-point shooter, who will only develop an inside game. He also is a stout shot-blocker and just 24 years old.
The Knicks failed to turn the cap space they opened up by trading Porzingis and Hardaway into another All-Star, while acquired point guard Dennis Smith Jr. has been a disappointment so far. These failures likely played a role in Steve Mills being fired as president in February.
The best part of the haul was the two future first-rounders the Knicks received from Dallas, both of which may be used by Rose in a trade for a standout like Porzingis.
Porzingis showed flashes of stardom this season. When Luka Doncic sprained his ankle during the winter, Porzingis’ numbers rose. In 12 games from Jan. 31 to March 4, Porzingis averaged 27.8 points, 11 rebounds and 2.3 blocks, shooting 50 percent. Doncic was out for half that stretch.
Mavs broadcaster and ex-Knick Derek Harper told The Post during the pandemic Dallas will win at least one title with Doncic and Porzingis together. Porzingis was averaging 19.2 points, 9.5 rebounds and 2.1 blocks this season, which is set to resume later this month in Orlando, Fla. without the Knicks.
“We don’t want to try to go too far ahead,” Porzingis said. “But I think all of our mind-sets are that we’re a dangerous team, and I think we can surprise people.”