Kendrick Perkins On WFAN: Mavericks Will Regret Trading For 'Soft' Porzingis

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Former NBA center Kendrick Perkins is no fan of Kristaps Porzingis, calling the Mavericks big man "soft."

"You see a guy that's just height, that's long, and people get mesmerized about 'oh man, he can shoot the 3, he can kind of put the ball on the floor,' and they get mesmerized by that. But he's still soft," Perkins, now a RADIO.COM Sports NBA insider, told WFAN's Joe Benigno and Evan Roberts on Wednesday. "He has no presence on the court. He doesn't anchor a defense."

Porzingis, of course, was drafted fourth overall by the Knicks in 2015 before being traded to Dallas this past January. On Thursday night, the 7-foot-3 Latvian will play the Knicks at Madison Square Garden for the first time since the trade.

Perkins gave a couple of examples of why he doesn't like Porzingis' game. He said it was clear in the fourth quarter against the Lakers earlier this month that Porzingis "wanted no part" of Anthony Davis, who was guarding him. 

"And just watching Porzingis and how he wanted out of New York without really proving himself -- yeah, he had some good games at times, but he's still soft to me, and he's a diva," said Perkins, who played 14 seasons in the NBA, winning a title with the Celtics in 2008.

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Perkins also pointed to Porzingis' 1-of-11 performance against Marcus Smart and the Celtics on Monday night. 

"I just don't know his game, man," he said. "For that size, he needs to be more of a presence, and he's not. And I'm telling you, man, Dallas is in for a rude awakening."