The Dallas Mavericks have been waiting for what happened on Wednesday for a long time. Mavericks F/C Kristaps Porzingis made his season debut against the Hornets. In 21 minutes, the 7-3 star scored 16 points, including 4-9 from three-point range as the Mavericks went into Charlotte and defeated the Hornets 104-93.
The 25-year-old Porzingis returned on Wednesday after he had surgery to repair his lateral meniscus in his right knee last October.
“It felt good. Finally, finally, it’s here,” Porzingis said about his debut. “I’ve been working a lot. Just coming back from the injury. It always a good feeling when you actually get there, and you get those minutes on the court, so I’m happy about that; I’m happy about the win. I’m looking forward to the next game already, and keep working and keep getting better.”
Mavs head coach Rick Carlisle, who got his 800th victory on Wednesday, added this about Porzingis: “I thought he played exceptionally well given the circumstances. He’ll only get better from here.”
Luka Donicic, who scored a game-high 34 points, along with 13 rebounds and 9 assists against the Hornets, was impressed by what he saw out of Porzingis on Wednesday night.
“He was great; he’s an amazing player,” Doncic said. “Obviously, it’s his first game; he played 20-something minutes. He’s going to get back into rhythm. I think for the first game, he played amazing. He’s going to keep improving, and we’re going to need him a lot.”
Porzingis was on a minutes restrictions against the Hornets, and according to him, he was trying to do as much as he could while on the court.
“What I think didn’t help me was knowing that I had the minutes restriction, so I was trying to do as much I could in those minutes that I had, and sometimes you don’t make the best decisions when you really want to be aggressive,” he said. “But, it’s okay, it’s apart of it. I wanted to be out there and be aggressive for the time I was going to be out there. Most importantly, first game and first win for me.”
Ever since the Hornets blew them out in December, the Mavericks have won five of their last six games and are on a four-game winning streak right now. Dallas is playing like the team we thought they could be when the season started.
Hopefully, as they go forward, Porzingis can stay healthy. When Porzingis is playing, Dallas is a much deeper and more potent team on the offensive end. In addition, he gives the Mavericks great length on the defensive end. Once they get back Dorian Finney-Smith, Josh Richardson, Maxi Kleber, and Jalen Brunson, who are out because of health and safety protocols, this team becomes deeper and better.
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