The Mavericks are an absolute dumpster fire right now. The past few weeks have been very rough for the organization.
First Dallas blew what seemed like a surefire first-round playoff victory over the Los Angeles Clippers. Then Donnie Nelson was shown the door after more than two decades with the organization. And just when everyone figured the bleeding had stopped, head coach Rick Carlisle opted to step down despite having multiple seasons left on his contract.
Now talk of Mavericks star Luka Doncic heading to the New York Knicks is heating up, and it is unclear what can be done at this juncture to ease the pain.
One of the main issues Dallas needs to figure out is the relationship between big man Kristaps Porzingis and Doncic. It has been reported endlessly that Doncic despises Porzingis, but the extent to which their relationship has deteriorated has gone largely unreported.
This past week, ESPN NBA insider Tim MacMahon appeared on Zach Lowe’s ‘The Lowe Post’ podcast and revealed the truth about the current state of affairs in Dallas.
“Porzingis is not at all enjoying playing for Dallas. Porzingis and Luka do not like each other,” MacMahon said.
That’s not great.
Doncic has made it no secret that he is deeply upset with some of Dallas’ latest moves, and having this friction between him and Porzingis will make the next head coach’s job extremely difficult.
Barring something crazy happening between now and the start of next season, the Mavericks could end up being the NBA’s most dysfunctional team in 2021-22.
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