Dallas Basketball

Former Mavs' Kristaps Porzingis on Imperfect Fit with Luka Doncic: 'A Lot of It's On Me'

After a disappointing stint in Dallas, Kristaps Porzingis was traded to Washington where his joy for the game was rejuvenated.

Michael Mulford

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When the Dallas Mavericks traded for Kristaps Porzingis prior to the 2019 trade deadline, the future in Dallas looked bright as ever. A duo of Luka Doncic and "The Unicorn?" Good luck to the rest of the league, right? Sadly for Dallas, that was not the case. 

Now with the Washington Wizards, Porzingis recently appeared on "The Ariel Helwani Basketball Show" and spoke on his time in Dallas and why playing with Doncic didn't work out, leading to the trade to Washington at the 2022 deadline.

“I wanted to get back to having fun and enjoy the game,” Porzingis said of being traded from Dallas to Washington. “I was having fun. I was doing my thing, I was having fun. It just wasn’t the perfect situation.”

The two offensive juggernauts showed flashes in their 2.5 years together in Dallas, but overall, the chemistry just wasn't there. Through injuries and inconsistent play, the frustration surrounding Porzingis rose, which ultimately led to him being traded to the Wizards.

“I thought so too, for sure,” Porzingis said while agreeing that his fit with Doncic wasn't a perfect one. “Yeah, I don’t know. We never played up to that level. And a lot of it’s on me.”

Porzingis referenced the Mavs ‘clicking at a high level’ in the bubble during the 2019-20 season but after getting injured against the Clippers in the postseason, he and Doncic struggled to reach that ‘high level’ together again.

"I wasn't playing at that level that I'm playing at right now," Porzingis said. "Overall, I think sooner or later, [the trade from Dallas] was going to be the result."

Even though KP's time in Dallas didn't go as planned from either side, the Wizards big man doesn't hold any ill will towards his former team. And the versatile big man even wishes the best for his former franchise.

“They always treated me good. They always treated me well," Porzingis said of the Mavericks. "I wish, truly, everybody in the organization the best."

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Michael Mulford
MICHAEL MULFORD

Michael Mulford is a writer/editor for Dallas Basketball, where he extensively covers the Dallas Mavericks. He also covers the Chicago Bulls as the Managing Editor for Bulls Wire of USA Today Sports Media Group. Mulford grew up in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and graduated from the University of North Texas in 2016 with a bachelor’s degree in Recreation, Event, and Sports Management. He began his pursuit of sports writing in 2017 with Dallas Sports Fanatic, where he covered the Mavericks’ G League affiliate, Texas Legends. He then became the Managing Editor of Dallas Sports Fanatic just one year later and has covered the Mavericks as a credentialed media member since 2018, including covering numerous playoff games between 2021-22 and covering the team at NBA Summer League in Las Vegas in 2019. In his time covering the Mavericks, Mulford has conducted numerous interviews for exclusive stories including with Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki, former Maverick and current VP of Basketball Ops Michael Finley, former Mavericks GM Donnie Nelson, and more. You can follow and interact with Mulford on Twitter at @TheMulf.

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