Mark Cuban says the Dallas Mavericks would have traded up to select Kristaps Porzingis if possible.

“We would have traded up in a heartbeat to get that kid,’’ Cuban said before the first Porzingis-Nowitzki showdown. “We loved him. Obviously, people are going to compare him to Dirk because that’s what people like to do. When you’re 7-foot-3, those three inches make a difference.

“I’m a Porzingis fan. I’ve got my Russian insults all packaged up to starting screaming at him with my high school Russian. Porzingis is the real deal. He’s got some s–t to him and that’s different.”

Porzingis actually barely speaks Russian as he's fluent in Latvian, English and Spanish.