TOLEDO, Ohio – Everyone loves a home game.

The ARCA Menards Series doesn’t race in Wheeling, W.Va., hometown of Travis Braden, but it does have a race in suburban Indianapolis, not that far from the RFMS Racing shop.

So Saturday’s Herr’s Potato Chips 200 at Lucas Oil Raceway is the best version of a home game Braden will get in 2019.

“Having a home track race is really a foreign concept to me, and I have had a lot of fun being able to call Lucas Oil Raceway my home track for the past few years,” Braden said. “RFMS Racing’s shop is just a few minutes from the track. Growing up in West Virginia, I was used to at least a two-hour drive to even the nearest track. Typically much further yet. While the short drive is extremely convenient, probably my favorite part about this home track race is that I get to race in front of a lot of my peers from my daily life here in Indiana. That’s something I’ve never experienced before, and it’s adrenaline-filling.  I now know why they call it the home field advantage.”

Racing at Lucas Oil Raceway doesn’t just mean racing close to home for Braden, it means returning to the site of his first ARCA Menards Series win, which came in his series debut in 2015.

Driving for his own family-owned team, and with a budget that only guaranteed them just that race, Braden used well-timed pit strategy to have fresher tires at the end of the race and he passed William Byron, at the time an ARCA rookie driving for Venturini Motorsports but now an established Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver for Hendrick Motorsports, with 21 laps to go.

It was perhaps one of the most surprising wins in recent ARCA Menards Series memory, and no one was more surprised at the time than Braden.

“To be honest, even now, years later, at times people will randomly bring up that race and I kind of forget that it was an actual thing that really happened,” Braden said. “It didn’t seem real then, and it doesn’t seem real today. First-time winners are not extremely uncommon in the ARCA Menards Series, but it was nearly unheard-of that a first time winner wasn’t driving for one of the big powerhouse teams, let alone a family-owned-and-operated team that had zero experience.

“When I tell you that we had no idea what we were doing, we had no idea what we were doing. I had to buy a new HANS device at the track because I didn’t know that they went out-of-date.  The whole process of preparing for the race, and the entire race day, were just a total cluster. Oh, and not to mention, we put basically our entire budget for the entire season into running just this one race. I think it was really these realities of the backstory that made it so surprising for everyone. It just wasn’t supposed to happen. I’m so thankful for the steps ARCA had just recently taken to bring the spec Ilmor engine into competition, which really was the puzzle piece that made it feasible for us. And I can never forget to mention Matt Weber, who was our crew chief and made the perfect call at the perfect time and truly made the magic happen.”

Braden, a graduate of West Virginia University with dual degrees in mechanical and aerospace engineering, now drives for long-time ARCA team owner Don Fike. The team, located in Brownsburg just outside of Indianapolis, has just two full-time employees: Braden and Casey Swift. Crew chief Jim Long is in regular communication with Braden throughout the week and joins the team at the track.

Despite the long odds, the small RFMS Racing team has stood toe-to-toe with the series powerhouse teams and has acquitted themselves very well. Braden currently sits fourth in the ARCA Menards Series championship standings, just 110 points out of third.

As a two-time ARCA/CRA Super Series late model champion, Braden knows how to get around short tracks. He’s finished second five times in ARCA/CRA competition this season, and is a former winner in late model competition at Lucas Oil Raceway as well. That gives him a lot of added confidence heading back to one of his favorite tracks.

“I have a lot of confidence at LOR,” he said. “It’s been a great track for me.  There seems to be a very select few guys that ever find success here, and I feel blessed to have been one of those few over the past five years. It’s probably the single most tactically challenging tracks on the schedule, and that gives really anyone a great chance to make things happen.  Back in the 2015 race, we actually went a lap down briefly during that race before making the comeback and winning.”

MEXICO CITY -- Club America goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa will be investigated by Liga MX after a photo appeared to show him spit towards Chivas defender Antonio Briseno during Saturday's Clasico Nacional.

Ochoa charged to the other end of the field in the first half of America's 4-1 win over Chivas to confront Briseno, who had launched an ugly tackle on America's Giovani dos Santos, causing the player to be rushed to hospital with a wound in his thigh.

After the game, a photo emerged of Ochoa appearing to spit towards Briseno, who didn't react.

Ochoa took to social media to deny he had spat in any way and retweeted comments indicating that saliva left his mouth as he was shouting at Briseno.

"I spoke with [Liga MX operations director Victor] Guevara and they're going to investigate what happened with Ochoa," Chivas sporting director Mariano Varela told journalists upon his return to Guadalajara. "What I believe is that 'Memo' is a very educated guy and I don't think that he intended to spit.

"We have to look at it and that's what the disciplinary commission will do."

America dominated the game against its archival with Ochoa picking up his first Liga MX win since returning to Mexico's first division after his spell in Europe.

FIFA has ordered Cardiff City to pay a transfer fee of £5.3 million (€6m) to Nantes for Emiliano Sala.

Sala died in a plane crash in January while travelling from Nantes to Cardiff after the two clubs agreed upon a transfer for the Argentine striker. After his death, the clubs failed to reach an agreement over the striker's outstanding £15m transfer fee so Nantes referred the case to FIFA in April.

- In search of Emiliano Sala

In a statement on Monday, FIFA said: "The FIFA Players' Status Committee established that Cardiff City FC must pay FC Nantes the sum of 6,000,000 euros, corresponding to the first instalment due in accordance with the transfer agreement."

A Cardiff City spokesperson said: "Cardiff City FC acknowledges the decision announced today by FIFA's Players Status Committee regarding the transfer of Emiliano Sala.

"We will be seeking further clarification from FIFA on the exact meaning of their statement in order to make an informed decision on our next steps."

Sources tell ESPN that Cardiff City will be seeking clarification over whether FIFA's ruling is one of multiple instalments or the final fee.

Nantes have yet to issue a response to FIFA's statement.

Back in April, Nantes called on FIFA to intervene after Cardiff City failed to make the first payment of the full transfer fee. FIFA originally gave both clubs until April 3 to submit their evidence but the deadline was extended after Cardiff wrote to Nantes in March in hopes of sorting the matter out internally. The clubs failed to reach an agreement so FIFA stepped in.

Nantes wanted the full transfer fee for Sala and sources said in April the French club were "extremely confident" of FIFA ruling in their favour.

The first instalment of Sala's transfer fee was initially due on Feb. 20, but the deadline passed without Cardiff making the payment.

Sources say Cardiff see the transfer as null and void as they believe certain criteria in the original contract were unfulfilled. Nantes, in turn, are adamant the transfer was completed and Sala was a Cardiff player when he died.

Both clubs have 10 days to request a copy of the grounds of the decision and decide whether they wish to appeal it to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland.

In a bid to reduce losses incurred by PSL franchises, the PCB has reduced the salary cap to assemble a full squad from USD 1.38 million to USD 1.1 million.

PSL franchises have struggled to turn a profit ever since the start of the tournament in 2016. In January this year, the original five - Islamabad United, Karachi Kings, Lahore Qalandars, Peshawar Zalmi and Quetta Gladiators - reported losses of PKR 200 million to 700 million (USD 1.4 million to USD 5 million approx) after just the first two seasons.

The PCB met with representatives from all six teams on Monday and, in addition to bringing down the salary cap, it also exempted them from paying their bank guarantee, a combined value of USD 14.51 million, ahead of the 2020 season.

"We had fruitful discussions with our valued partners and we have found a way forward," said PCB's Chief Executive Wasim Khan. "In the days ahead, our preparations for the HBL PSL 2020 season will continue in full swing, we are committed to staging the entire edition in Pakistan and the franchises are on-board with us."

ESPNcricinfo understands that the change to the salary cap happened after an understanding that a majority of the players who play the PSL participate in other franchise-based T20 leagues for lower wages.

PCB had earlier classified the US$ 1.38 million purse into five categories: Platinum (USD 570,000), Diamond (USD 270,000), Gold (USD 180,000), Silver (USD 140,000), and Emerging (USD 25,000) with provision for an extra USD 175,000 for supplement players.

In comparison, and according to an internal PCB document, IPL franchises spend USD 11.8 million on players, CPL USD 0.764 million, Global T20 Canada USD 0.65 million, while the postponed Euro T20 Slam had a pocket of USD 0.65m approximately.

The financial structure has caused plenty of friction between the PCB and PSL franchises and hit its peak when the board was late in distributing the franchises' share of the revenue generated during the 2019 season. This led to all six owners refusing to submit their bank guarantee. Pushed to a corner, the PSL's general council met in Karachi along with PCB chairman Ehsan Mani to deliberate on the matter. Qalandars and Multan Sultans were represented by their owners themselves while the rest of the teams sent proxies.

The falling value of the Pakistani rupee against the US dollar has been another bone of contention. At the time of signing the franchise agreement in 2016, the exchange rate pegged the Pakistani Rupee at 105 to the dollar. That value has now slumped to 154.

In what could be seen as some consolation for the owners, the PCB has agreed to lock this conversion to PKR 138.50. Further, the PCB will engage with a consultant to evaluate the financial model and advise the PCB to find a middle ground.

Bradley Chubb has a partially torn ACL in his left knee and will miss the rest of the season, a "huge loss" for the winless Denver Broncos.

Broncos coach Vic Fangio confirmed that Chubb, the fifth overall pick in the 2018 draft, suffered the season-ending injury in Denver's 26-24 loss Sunday to the Jacksonville Jaguars.

"It's a huge loss," Fangio said Monday. "He's a tempo-setter, a great person, a great leader."

Fangio said Chubb had discomfort in his knee Monday morning and was sent for an MRI, which revealed the partial tear. The star outside linebacker left Sunday's game twice -- first for a calf injury, then for the knee injury -- before returning to the lineup to close out the contest.

"He felt good enough to come back in and actually he played that last series pretty damn well," Fangio said. "[He] had some really good pass rushes, caused that fumble that [we] weren't able to get. So he was as surprised, I think, as anybody this morning when he woke up feeling the way he did."

Chubb suffered the injury with just over 14 minutes remaining when he was engaged with Jaguars tight end Geoff Swaim on a run by running back Ryquell Armstead. In all he played 74 of the team's 85 snaps on defense, including all of the snaps on the Jaguars' game-winning drive in the closing minutes.

Fangio said the Broncos will have to consider their options to both fill Chubb's large presence in the defense as well as his roster spot. Rookies Malik Reed and Justin Hollins could be part of the equation, but the Broncos will likely have to add a linebacker.

"It's a huge loss, he's one of our better players obviously,'' Fangio said of Chubb. "He's a tempo setter, great player, great person, leader, all of that.''

Veteran outside linebacker Dekoda Watson, who was with the Broncos during the preseason, is currently a free agent and is another possibility.

In terms of recovery, Chubb won't have to look far for advice. Von Miller tore his ACL in December of the 2013 season and has had at least 10 sacks in each of the next five seasons entering this year.

The Boston Red Sox missed the playoffs, so there will be a new champion in 2019. Will the Houston Astros take home their second title in three years? Or can the Los Angeles Dodgers get over the final hurdle and take home their first championship since 1988?

Or will it be a surprise team like the Washington Nationals or Minnesota Twins?

With the postseason set to start Tuesday with the NL wild-card game, we asked 30 of our MLB experts -- from ESPN.com, TV, Stats & Information and more -- to give us their predictions: wild-card game winners, division series winners, league championship series winners and World Series winner.

Below are the vote totals along with analysis from some of our experts.

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National League wild-card game: Brewers at Nationals, Tuesday, 8 p.m. ET (TBS)

Nationals: 23
Brewers: 7

You went against chalk and picked the Brewers. Why?

On paper, this one screams Nationals. They have the better offense and Max Scherzer on the mound -- with Stephen Strasburg and Patrick Corbin available in relief. So this is mostly a gut pick. Given their recent playoff history, all the pressure is on the Nationals and Scherzer has been a little leaky of late with a 5.16 ERA in September. The Brewers are riding that end-of-season momentum, plus Lorenzo Cain will probably make two diving catches in center field and rob Juan Soto of a home run.-- David Schoenfield

Why are you picking the Nationals?

Scherzer is pitching. And while he hasn't been shut-you-down Scherzer leading up to the postseason -- nor, it should be noted, in the postseason, either -- I'll leave it to someone else to bet against him. Maybe this is finally the Nationals' year. -- Jeff Passan

American League wild-card game: Rays at Twins, Wednesday, 8 p.m. ET (ESPN)

Athletics: 18
Rays: 12

Why are you picking the Rays?

This should be a tight, low-scoring affair, but this is mostly about my confidence in Charlie Morton throwing six stellar innings for the Rays. He's been one of the best starters in the majors and he's obviously come up big before in the postseason (see Game 7 of the 2017 World Series). From there, Kevin Cash can deploy his multitude of relievers to match up with the A's. -- Schoenfield

Why are you picking the A's?

In a coin-flip game -- especially one in which the teams will be carrying manifold relievers to mix and match like this is a chemistry experiment -- the tie goes to the team that can score runs with one swing. And with more than 250 home runs this season, the A's are more capable than Tampa Bay of producing those runs in bunches. It's hard to bet against Morton and whatever else the Rays have up their sleeves, but the prospect of Oakland throwing Sean Manaea, Jesus Luzardo and Liam Hendriks makes it easier. -- Passan

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National League Division Series

NLDS No. 1: Nats/Brewers at Dodgers -- Dodgers: 26; Nationals: 4

Why are you picking the Dodgers?

This is not finally the Nationals' year. The Dodgers are too good and too deep to allow themselves to get worn down by Washington's superior starting pitching. They've got parent-of-a-2-year-old patience at the plate, and it's the sort of thing that can help even out whatever disadvantage they may face and allow the Dodgers to do all the other things they do better than the Nationals, like hit, run, field and pitch out of the bullpen. -- Passan

Why the Nationals over the Dodgers?

It's simple -- the Nationals are hot and have pitching while the Dodgers basically haven't played a meaningful game since last year's World Series. After advancing deep into the postseason the last two years, they are ripe for an early exit. It's nothing they can control. They have good players, but the Nationals -- who are ascending to the next level without Bryce Harper -- will continue with an early upset. -- Jesse Rogers

NLDS No. 2: Cardinals at Braves -- Braves: 20; Cardinals: 10

Why are you picking the Braves?

Atlanta is limping into the playoffs. The Cardinals are hobbling in. So this one comes down to talent, and while two potential Jack Flaherty starts would give the Cardinals a lifeline, the Braves may not allow this series to last until a fifth game.-- Passan

Why are you picking the Cardinals?

At the most basic level, there isn't much to separate the Cardinals and Braves. Their respective Pythagorean records (based on run differential) are essentially equal, with St. Louis owning a one-game advantage. That gap grows considerably if you zero in on the second half of the season. Beyond that, as much as I like Atlanta's young starters, the Cardinals have a better No. 1 in Jack Flaherty and a better rotation in general. In a best-of-five series, the Braves would face Flaherty twice. That's enough right there for me to give the nod to a St. Louis team that may be the superior group anyway. -- Bradford Doolittle

American League Division Series

ALDS No. 1: A's/Rays at Astros -- Astros: 29; A's: 1

Why are you picking the Astros?

This might not be easy. The A's and Rays both provide formidable matchups for the favorites. Oakland's all-around excellence and recent mastery of the Astros gives the A's a better-than-imagined chance, especially in a five-game series. Tampa Bay doesn't frighten on paper, but a Tyler Glasnow-Blake Snell-Charlie Morton trio is awfully compelling. All those words aside: The Astros are still better. -- Passan

ALDS No. 2: Twins at Yankees -- Yankees: 21; Twins: 9

Why are you picking the Yankees?

This has a chance to be the best division series. They're the two home run-hittingest teams of all time. Neither has an abundance of starting pitching. The Yankees' bullpen is superior, but the Twins' has improved significantly. Neither is what one would call great in the field. There could be a few football scores in this series, and ultimately, as good as the Twins are, the Yankees' offense is slightly more lethal. -- Passan

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National League Championship Series

Dodgers: 23
Braves: 3
Nationals: 3
Cardinals: 1

Why are you picking the Braves to get past the Dodgers and into the World Series?

The Braves are much more suited for the postseason matchup than a year ago, after a season of growth from their young roster. Dansby Swanson will have his moments.-- Buster Olney

Why are you picking the Dodgers?

A rematch from the division series last year, when the Dodgers summarily disposed of the Braves. Atlanta is one year older, one year better, one year closer. So are the Dodgers. And though the lineups are awfully similar, maybe even a tad in favor of the Braves, everything else the Dodgers do is better. And not by a small margin exactly, either. -- Passan

American League Championship Series

Astros: 27
Yankees: 2
Twins: 1

The Astros were clearly the choice in the AL -- why are you picking Houston to get to the World Series?

The matchup we've waited for all season. These two haven't faced each other since June 23, when Houston salvaged the final game of a four-game swing through New York to help take the season series 4-3. Now both are 100-game-plus winners and confident this is their year. This won't be a gimme for the Astros, but you go ahead and take the team without Justin Verlander, Gerrit Cole, Zack Greinke, Alex Bregman, Yordan Alvarez, Jose Altuve, George Springer, Michael Brantley, Yuli Gurriel and others. Be my guest. -- Passan

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World Series

Astros: 19
Dodgers: 6
Yankees: 1
Twins: 1
Nationals: 1
Cardinals: 1
Braves: 1

The Astros are clearly our overwhelming favorite -- why are you picking Houston to win its second title in three years?

It's about the names and their production and betting on talent, and even then this one (vs. Dodgers) is barely in favor of the Astros. The Dodgers, meanwhile, have vengeance on their minds from the 2017 World Series. Unfortunately, life isn't like "Kill Bill," and you can't use the Five Point Palm Exploding Heart Technique on a baseball team. This is the Astros' year, and with two championships in three seasons, they're verging on dynasty status. -- Passan

I picked them in preseason and they haven't exactly given any reason to pick against them. It is a team without flaws and riding two of the hottest starting pitchers in the game in Justin Verlander (11-2, 2.06 ERA over his final 15 starts) and Gerrit Cole (he's won 16 consecutive decisions). They also enter October healthier than last year -- Jose Altuve in particular -- and also with more balance in the lineup thanks to lefties Yordan Alvarez and Michael Brantley. They win their second title in three years and establish themselves as one of the greatest teams of all time.-- Schoenfield

The Astros went into this season determined to do what they could not do in 2018 -- push through and win a second championship in the tenure of Jeff Luhnow and A.J. Hinch. And it's very possible they have a better, deeper team this year than in 2017. -- Olney

Look, no team is invulnerable in the postseason, but the Astros won 107 games with a run profile that legitimizes every last one of those wins. They will be heavy favorites in every game started by Justin Verlander, Gerrit Cole and Zack Greinke. That makes the margin of error awfully small for opposing pitchers who have to navigate Houston's star-laden lineup. There is just no reason to pick against Houston this October, short-series randomness aside. -- Doolittle

Going with chalk in predictions is no fun, but there really is no logical reason to pick against the Astros. Their starting pitching is better than anyone else's starting pitching. Their lineup is deep and powerful. As our predictions show, Houston is the clearly the team to beat -- but the beautiful thing about baseball this time of year is that anything can happen. -- Dan Mullen

Why are you picking the Dodgers?

Maybe it's just my thinking it's their turn to finally win, after back-to-back World Series losses. Maybe it's just a hunch. But the Dodgers' numbers on both sides of the ball were competitive with any of the American League's most likely World Series participants, and they do have roster depth and balance that few teams would find easy to match. I don't think they'll face many bad matchups during the postseason, and that might be enough for them to emerge victorious this time. -- Tristan H. Cockcroft, ESPN Fantasy

You're the only one picking the Cardinals -- why are they your WS pick?

I am sure the first question is, why? Why would she be picking a team that limped to the NL Central title? I believed in the Cardinals after spring training, they were my World Series pick back in March, and I continue to believe in them heading into the postseason. I think that Paul Goldschmidt is primed to become a playoff superstar. The Cardinals' biggest weapon is Yadier Molina -- no team this postseason has a catcher with more playoff experience than Molina, and that will be key in guiding a talented pitching staff. -- Marly Rivera

GREENBURGH, N.Y. -- Free agency was only a few hours old when the New York Knicks acknowledged their fans' disappointment.

Three months later, the Knicks have changed their tune.

Not only was free agency a success, they say, but fans are going to forget about who the Knicks didn't get because they're going to love who they did.

"These are guys that our fans are going to like, the toughness that they bring every day when they come to the court to play for the Knicks," team President Steve Mills said Monday.

The Knicks signed seven new players in free agency, adding Julius Randle, Bobby Portis, Taj Gibson, Marcus Morris, Elfrid Payton, Wayne Ellington and Reggie Bullock. But by that time, Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving had already committed to Brooklyn Nets in the early hours of free agency, and Mills released a statement that night saying he understood that fans could be disappointed but that the team remained confident in its plans.

And though the Knicks had enough money to afford two top free agents, Mills said the team they ended up assembling was exactly the type of roster the front office targeted all along.

"So we're excited about the group of guys that we have," Mills said. "Obviously based on the timeline and how we signed those guys it was clear they were on our radar and they were part of what we thought the future of the Knicks could be and what it should look like."

It's certainly good enough, combined with No. 3 draft pick RJ Barrett, to improve on what was an NBA-low 17 wins last season. The physicality in the frontcourt and the shooting just about everywhere should exceed anything the 2018-19 Knicks could offer.

"I can tell you this: First and foremost, it's not going to be like last year," said Morris, who said the Knicks have a lot of "dogs" on the roster who won't back down from competition.

The Knicks seem content to view themselves as a hard-working group of underdogs who together can overcome a lack of individual talent.

"The fact that none of them has been heralded as superstars, they understand that they're going to need each other to win games," coach David Fizdale said.

OWNER ON BOARD

Madison Square Garden chairman James Dolan predicted the Knicks were going to have a successful summer during a radio interview last season, which seemed to hint that the Knicks believed they would get some of the top talent that was available. But Mills said Dolan was aware of what the Knicks were planning and satisfied with the results.

"Jim knew we were going to have a successful free agency period and we feel like we did that," Mills said. "He was on board with what we were doing."

GETTING THE POINT

The Knicks' most interesting roster situation in training camp could be at point guard, where Payton will compete with former lottery picks Dennis Smith Jr. and Frank Ntilikina. Smith came from Dallas last season in the trade for Kristaps Porzingis, and Ntilikina hopes to jump-start what's been a largely disappointing Knicks career after playing well for France when it beat the U.S. at the Basketball World Cup.

"I think it's going to be a great battle," Fizdale said. "I think they're all going to push each other. I think they're going to compete their butts off."

INJURY UPDATES

The Knicks said Bullock is making progress from a cervical disk herniation and will be re-evaluated in early November. They added that swingman Damyean Dotson likely won't play in the preseason because of a right shoulder injury but could be ready for the start of the season.

ROOKIE'S ROLE

Barrett was the Knicks' highest draft pick since taking Hall of Famer Patrick Ewing with the No. 1 selection in 1985, but he won't walk right into a starting spot. Fizdale said the swingman from Duke will be treated like Kevin Knox, last season's first-round pick who had to earn his minutes.

"It'll be the same but probably tougher on RJ because I think, again, this team is more talented," Fizdale said. "I think we have more guys that he has to fight with to get those minutes, but I think the kid is up for it."

EXPECTATION OF EFFORT

The Knicks won't make any predictions for this season, beyond that their effort will be there whether or not the wins are.

"We're a deep team so we're not going to do ourselves any justice by going out there and half going, not playing as hard as we can," Randle said.

DALLAS -- Dallas Mavericks power forward Kristaps Porzingis said he feels "probably better than I ever have in my life" and will have no limitations entering training camp, almost 20 months after he tore the ACL in his left knee in the last NBA game that he played.

Porzingis, the 7-foot-3 All-Star the Mavs acquired in a blockbuster deal with the New York Knicks before last season's trade deadline, bulked up to a personal-high 242 pounds over the summer. Teammates raves about the explosiveness displayed by Porzingis in recent pickup games.

"I feel great physically. I feel 100 percent. I feel probably better than I ever have in my life," Porzingis told ESPN.

"It's been a long time since I've been out, but I've been putting in work throughout this rehab process. I'm extremely excited to be back on the court and to remind everybody what I'm capable of doing."

Porzingis has been medically cleared for full basketball activities for several months. He practiced with the Mavs late last season, but Porzingis and the team mutually agreed that it was in his best interests long term to continue prioritizing strength and conditioning work instead of playing in the final 10 or 15 games of the season.

Dallas will continue to take a long-term, cautious approach with Porzingis, who re-signed with the Mavs this summer on a five-year, $148 million maximum contract, although details of his load management program have yet to be finalized.

"If I had a gun to my head, I would say that there's a good chance that we will be very careful on back-to-backs, particularly to start the year," Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said. "But I don't know for sure. I don't know how he's going to be feeling at that point. He may be insisting on playing, but I do believe in his case and in the case of any player like that, the Mavericks or whatever team is going to err on the side of caution."

The Mavs believe Porzingis and 20-year-old Luka Doncic, last season's Rookie of the Year, can eventually be the pillars of a contender. They have been frequently compared, by those inside and outside the organization, as a larger version of the Dirk Nowitzki-Steve Nash duo that played such a critical role in the franchise's revival in the 2000s.

"It could be a nightmare for the teams going forward," said Porzingis, who averaged 22.7 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.4 blocks per game in his final season with the Knicks before suffering the knee injury in early February. "We just have to develop that chemistry on the floor."

The hope is that Porzingis and Doncic can lead the Mavs back to the playoffs this season, which would end a three-year drought.

"He's an amazing player, great talent, hard worker," Doncic said. "We have him, me and a lot of great players on this team, so that's why I want to make the playoffs and I hope we do."