Dallas Bought a Second Star Before Luka's Rise Was Complete
Dallas acquired Kristaps Porzingis, Tim Hardaway Jr., Courtney Lee and Trey Burke on January 31, 2019 for Dennis Smith Jr., DeAndre Jordan, Wesley Matthews and two first-round picks. Porzingis was still rehabbing the torn ACL that had ended his 2017-18 season, so the Mavericks were paying for a 23-year-old All-Star projection rather than immediate production. The gamble produced 134 regular-season games from Porzingis across three Dallas seasons, including 20.1 points per game in 2020-21.
Hardaway Made the Dallas Package Deeper Than Porzingis Alone
Tim Hardaway Jr. became the other durable piece of the return. He settled into a high-volume perimeter role, averaged 16.6 points in 70 games in 2020-21 and stayed with Dallas through the franchise's 2024 Finals season. Porzingis never developed into the long-term co-star Dallas envisioned, but he was later traded to Washington for Spencer Dinwiddie and Davis Bertans. That conversion, plus Hardaway's multi-year contribution, gave the Mavericks several seasons of usable value from the package.
New York's Veteran Return Was Mostly About Expirings and Flexibility
The Knicks received Dennis Smith Jr., DeAndre Jordan and Wesley Matthews alongside the two firsts. Smith was the young-player swing, while Jordan and Matthews supplied expiring salary. The trade also removed the longer Hardaway and Lee contracts as New York prepared for 2019 free agency. The cap-space strategy did not itself guarantee a star signing, so the hindsight grade cannot credit unrelated later roster success. The stronger traceable case for New York rests on the draft capital.
Both First-Round Picks Conveyed, but Neither Became a Franchise Anchor
The unprotected 2021 Dallas first landed at No. 21, the Keon Johnson slot. New York traded that selection to the Clippers and received No. 25 Quentin Grimes plus a future second-round pick. The second Dallas first stayed protected in 2023 and finally conveyed at No. 24 in 2024, the Kyshawn George slot; the Knicks again traded the pick on draft night. Two first-round assets gave New York legitimate flexibility, but the return never produced a player comparable to the upside Dallas was chasing with Porzingis.
Final Verdict
Slight Mavericks Edge — Dallas B, New York B-. Dallas accepted injury risk and two first-round-pick costs to acquire Kristaps Porzingis, then received 134 regular-season games from him before converting him into Spencer Dinwiddie and Davis Bertans. Tim Hardaway Jr. added several productive seasons and remained on the 2024 Finals roster. New York created major cap flexibility and received two firsts that ultimately landed at No. 21 in 2021 and No. 24 in 2024, but Dennis Smith Jr. did not become a cornerstone and the pick value did not produce a comparable centerpiece. The gap is modest, which fits the canonical grades.