spent with a single franchise. 2019–present: The Luka Dončić era 2019–2021: Return to playoff contention and Dončić's rise On January 31, 2019, the Mavericks sent Dennis Smith Jr., DeAndre Jordan, Wesley Matthews, and two future first-round draft picks to the New York Knicks in exchange for Kristaps Porziņģis, Tim Hardaway Jr., Courtney Lee, and Trey Burke. At the quarter-mark of the 2019-20 season, the Mavericks began with a 15–6 record through their first 21 games. With Luka Dončić averaging a near 30-point triple-double, leading the Mavericks in points, rebounds, and assists and entering MVP contention, he led the Mavericks to the top-rated offense in the league. On December 12, 2019, the Mavericks won against the Detroit Pistons in Mexico City, due to the NBA's efforts to expand internationally. During that game, Luka Dončić tallied 41 points, 12 rebounds, and 11 assists, becoming the first player in NBA history to record multiple 40-point triple-doubles before turning 21-years-old. Dončić was later selected to his first NBA All-Star Game as a Western Conference starter. Following the suspension of the 2019–20 NBA season, the Mavericks were one of the 22 teams invited to the NBA Bubble to participate in the regular season's final eight games. They resumed play on July 31, with a 153–149 loss against the Houston Rockets. On August 2, after the Memphis Grizzlies lost against the San Antonio Spurs, the Mavericks clinched a spot in the 2020 NBA Playoffs no worse than the 7th seed, marking their first trip since 2016. Dončić was announced as one of the three finalists for the NBA Most Improved Player Award. In the first round against the Los Angeles Clippers, which was the first time the two teams ever faced off in the playoffs, the Mavericks lost 4–2, despite historically great performances by Dončić. Dončić later was selected to the All-NBA First Team. The 2020–21 season saw Dallas have players miss 41 games to COVID-19 protocols, with Maxi Kleber, Jalen Brunson, Josh Richardson and Dorian Finney-Smith missing most of those 41 games. Additionally the start of the season saw forward Kristaps Porziņģis missing the first 9 games as he recovered from offseason meniscus surgery. At one point Dallas dropped to 14th in the Western conference largely in part due to missing key pieces of their rotation. Despite this, Dallas improved on their previous season record and finished the season 42-30. The Mavericks clinched the Southwest