Mavs’ trade for Porzingis originated around another player
When the Dallas Mavericks called the New York Knicks about a trade, the prize they landed was not the player they originally targeted.
In the final days of January 2019, the Mavericks called to ask about the availability not of Kristaps Porzingis, but another player on the Knicks roster.
“A lot of people don’t know this, but the trade was not for Kristaps Porzingis. The trade was for Tim Hardaway Jr.,” said Tim Hardaway, his dad, in a phone interview this week. “Everybody thinks that trade is for Porzingis.”
He’s right. Not a lot of people know this tiny detail, and everybody does think the eight-player trade the Mavs made with the Knicks on Feb. 1, 2019 was for the All-Star center from Latvia.
“Dallas called New York first about Tim Hardaway Jr. That was who they wanted. That’s when New York said, ‘What do you think about Porzingis?’” Hardaway Sr. said. “And then they threw Tim in the deal. People are going to say that’s not true to cover their butt, but that’s what I know.”
According to Mavericks officials, this distinction has merit. Porzingis was, at the time, still recovering from knee surgery performed the year before, and he was not thought to be available.
There were rumors and reports, however, that Porzingis was unhappy with the Knicks, and wanted to be on another team.
Adding players to deals is not new in the NBA. What made this trade so spectacular is how fast a transaction of this scale happened so quickly involving a pair of lottery picks, including one All-Star player.
Thus far, the trade has worked the way the Mavs needed; Porzingis is an All-Star caliber again, and the player they originally targeted, Hardaway Jr., has developed into the third scorer they need.
Although Hardaway Sr.’s legacy in basketball is secure from a brilliant college career at UTEP, and an All-Star run through the NBA, he admits there is more satisfaction in watching his son thrive.
Hardaway Jr. scored 24 points in the Mavs’ 153-149 gag/loss to the Houston Rockets on Friday night in the NBA’s re-start in Orlando.
The Mavs play the Phoenix Suns on Sunday, Aug. 2.
“I am more proud of my son with the way he is with the Mavericks; the way he has taken adversity and dealt with it,” he said. “My career is my career and that’s over with. I’m so happy for him. It’s ‘Team Tim Hardaway Jr.’”
There was a reason why the Mavs called the Knicks about Hardaway Jr. At 6-foot-6, he has good length for a shooting guard and elements that suggested, in the right spot, he could be a solid NBA scorer on a good team.
In his first six NBA seasons, the only decent team he was a member of was the Atlanta Hawks, from 2015 to ‘17. He was a member of their playoff teams.
Then he returned to the Knicks, and while he had the security of a multi-year contract he was stuck on one of the most dysfunctional teams in basketball.
When he was traded to the Mavs, he finally had the chance to be a good player on a good team.
With Luka Doncic and Porzingis creating space, Hardaway Jr. is a solid NBA contributor. He’s averaging 15.8 points per game, makes 41 percent on his three-point attempts, and the Mavs are a playoff team.
The main player the Mavs sent to the Knicks in the trade was former lottery pick Dennis Smith Jr., whose descent is as sad as it is amazing; DSJ started three games for the Knicks this season and averaged 5.5 points.
Hardaway Jr.’s dad played in the NBA for 15 seasons, and is familiar with the reality that in order to have an NBA career a player needs to be in a good spot.
“I was ecstatic; we all were,” Hardaway said. “As a ballplayer you always hear about getting traded, but when you find out you’re going to a good team with a chance to be a great team, it’s a great feeling.”
Hardaway Jr. was obviously not the headliner in the Mavericks’ trade with the New York Knicks on Jan. 31, 2019, but it stands to reason they wanted him in the first place.
