What It Means:

Porzingis is recovering from a knee operation he underwent at the beginning of October. Sefko says the Mavericks will be cautious but that Porzingis is expected to play at some point this upcoming season. Mavericks president Donny Nelson is hoping Porzingis will be cleared for on-court work around the beginning of the new year. Dwight Powell (Achilles) will see an expanded role if he's available at the start of the season and Maxi Kleber should also benefit while Porzingis is sidelined. Luka Doncic also figures to see an uptick in usage.

Porzingis averaged 40.9 FanDuel points per game last season. He finished particularly strong with 27.2 points, 8.7 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1.2 blocks, and 3.3 3-pointers over his last six games while shooting 51.3 percent from beyond the arc.