Trade & FA 2024-25:

[Chicagojk]

Backup four is the weakness in case of PJ injury. What we have now is fine. Maxi is allergic on offense but will always be a wild card. You never know when he miraculously hits 4 threes in a big game. On defense he is good. Especially with his size for the PF. Paired with a center, it just adds so much size. In addition, this will be a great time to feed Omax minutes in small doses and give him more experience.

[MAVS-SLO]

I doubt the Mavs are looking for a reunion with DFS. For one, Brooklyn is seeking a 1st rounder for him I've heard (not sure if that's valid). And who or what (players or picks) go back to Brooklyn?  Where does he fit with PJ and Naji?

I think we are on the on the market for someone on forward position. I don't know if that is reunion with DFS, but DFS is someone in our range that we can trade for. And market for the players in that range isn't big.

He fits as a backup PF. You could see last season how tired PJ was after playing almost 40 min. in PO series. With DFS on the team, those minutes can reduce, while with always injured Maxi couldn't.

[Chicagojk]

I think all the times the Mavs are mentioned in this trade is probably a combination of made up, agent talk/hope and the Mavs covering all their bases. Probably what most teams do. In the past, the Mavs seemed really slow to react when something changed or fell through. The last few years we have seen them move on to PJ and Gafford when other routes were closed. Same thing when they lost DJJ, they had a contingency set up for that as well.

We have no idea where we will be when the trade deadline approaches. It is smart to do the work now, in case something unexpectant pops up.

Previous front office/ownership was weirdly transfixed on nothing leaking and not being scooped. Sometimes to the detriment of everything else.

[Smitty]

These are the names I’d keep an eye on:

Avdija 15.6M
DFS 14.9M
B. Portis 12.6M
Thybulle 11.0M

Nico keeps after his targets. These guys still fill a perceived need and their current salary makes a trade more manageable.

[DL2RimRocker]

I think we are on the on the market for someone on forward position. I don't know if that is reunion with DFS, but DFS is someone in our range that we can trade for. And market for the players in that range isn't big.

He fits as a backup PF. You could see last season how tired PJ was after playing almost 40 min. in PO series. With DFS on the team, those minutes can reduce, while with always injured Maxi couldn't.

Yeah, a bigger backup PF to replace Maxi would be ideal, but DFS plays big and can guard multiple positions. 
DFS is realistically the closest thing to the missing piece imo.
Unfortunately, it will most likely come at the cost of OMax or our FRP.
I could see something like Maxi/OMax/2nd RP getting it done for us, but maybe we could get lucky and keep the 2nd rounder, or even better would be swapping out OMax with Morris and we add another 2nd.

I'd be very surprised if Mavs don't make a move for DFS.

[KillerLeft]

These are the names I’d keep an eye on:

Avdija 15.6M
DFS 14.9M
B. Portis 12.6M
Thybulle 11.0M

Nico keeps after his targets. These guys still fill a perceived need and their current salary makes a trade more manageable.

I don't think Portis belongs on the list, but I could see the others. 

The only one I, personally, would be excited about is DFS. Portis obviously helps, but I don't think he's available (at least not to a team like the Mavs). I like Avdija, but I don't think there's room for him here anymore, and I don't think you get much from him you're not already getting from Marshall. I guess it's debatable which of those two you'd rather have (Avdija or Marshall), but I'd lean towards the guy who's already here, already fits, and playing better and better (with THIS team) on a consistently upward trajectory. 

I have just as little interest in Thybulle as I did when they offered that contract, and consider Portland matching a notch on the "Mavs got saved from themselves" list.

[DL2RimRocker]

I don't think Portis belongs on the list, but I could see the others. 

The only one I, personally, would be excited about is DFS. Portis obviously helps, but I don't think he's available (at least not to a team like the Mavs). I like Avdija, but I don't think there's room for him here anymore, and I don't think you get much from him you're not already getting from Marshall. I guess it's debatable which of those two you'd rather have (Avdija or Marshall), but I'd lean towards the guy who's already here, already fits, and playing better and better (with THIS team) on a consistently upward trajectory. 

I have just as little interest in Thybulle as I did when they offered that contract, and consider Portland matching a notch on the "Mavs got saved from themselves" list.

Yep, I agree about Thybulle. 
Plus, we need a bigger defender.
DFS just makes sense for us, and I think he'd embrace a lesser role than he had when we traded him.
He does check just about every box (veteran, experienced with system, great locker room presence, can guard 1-4, and can shoot the 3).

And honestly, I think losing PJ would be more detrimental to the team right now than losing either Luka or Kyrie. DFS would be a cheap way to somewhat mitigate the risk of losing PJ for any length of time.
Plus looking ahead, he'd also be some insurance if Grimes becomes too expensive to re-sign.
It would really be sweet if Nico could somehow pull off a Maxi/Morris/Two 2nds for DFS.

[KillerLeft]

DFS just makes sense for us, and I think he'd embrace a lesser role than he had when we traded him.
He does check just about every box (veteran, experienced with system, great locker room presence, can guard 1-4, and can shoot the 3).

And honestly, I think losing PJ would be more detrimental to the team right now than losing either Luka or Kyrie. DFS would be a cheap way to somewhat mitigate the risk of losing PJ for any length of time.

Plus looking ahead, he'd also be some insurance if Grimes becomes too expensive to re-sign.

Totally agree with the first point - it's plausible that DFS would value a return here enough to happily accept a reduced role. He's that type of dude to begin with, and on top of that, he has been stuck in a bad situation since getting traded. And, he's getting to that age, also. However, I think he is still right for a bigger role than what would be available to him here (unless either Thompson or Marshall are outgoing, which I highly doubt), so I guess I just struggle with that, especially when you mix in the trade cost he'll fetch for Brooklyn. I think he ends up on a team where he's either the starting 4 or at least the first forward off the bench, and neither of those roles is open here, no matter how the rotation shakes out. 

Having said that, I TOTALLY agree with your point regarding how screwed the Mavericks would be if PJW missed significant time due to injury. I don't have any problems whatsoever giving Marshall those backup 4 minutes when the rotation shortens, but I don't think he could replace the 38 minutes of excellent defense they're getting from PJW there by himself. DFS would be a needle mover in terms of insurance there, for sure, and probably enough to warrant easing up on PJ's minutes just a bit to load manage him. So, I agree with you that from a certain angle it makes a ton of sense. I just don't know that it's appropriate, given the cost and how much basketball seems to be left in DFS. Still, I'd be excited to have him back - that's for sure. 

I don't really see how he'd help insulate against losing Grimes, however. I think they're totally different players who fit into totally different roles on both sides of the court. You kind of lost me on that one.

[Knutsen]

I doubt the Mavs are looking for a reunion with DFS. For one, Brooklyn is seeking a 1st rounder for him I've heard (not sure if that's valid). And who or what (players or picks) go back to Brooklyn?  Where does he fit with PJ and Naji?

I can very well imagine that we dangle next years first rounder - first of all it will be a very low pick and the guy we could pick would have a hard time making an impact in the next two or three years when the Kyrie and Klay window is open and we have a very deep and talented team. So trading this pick plus Maxi for someone who increases our title chances this year and ideally in the next years is probably a no-brainer for the Mavs braintrust.

[F Gump]

It would really be sweet if Nico could somehow pull off a Maxi/Morris/Two 2nds for DFS.

Significantly short of fitting into hard cap (by about $4M). Adding minimum salary players (like Morris) to a package don't help, since you then have to turn around and re-fill the empty slot - and that new player will get AT LEAST minimum salary.

[KillerLeft]

Significantly short of fitting into hard cap (by about $4M). Adding minimum salary players (like Morris) to a package don't help, since you then have to turn around and re-fill the empty slot - and that new player will get AT LEAST minimum salary.

Setting draft capital aside (I think it takes exactly one 1st), how do you think a hypothetical DFS trade would look, outgoing/incoming salaries wise?

I ask because I suspect most aren't aware of just how disruptive a trade on that level is likely to be this year, but I might be wrong - it might be more doable than I expect. I trust your understanding of the financial realities more than my own.

[Smitty]

I don't think Portis belongs on the list, but I could see the others. 

The only one I, personally, would be excited about is DFS. Portis obviously helps, but I don't think he's available (at least not to a team like the Mavs). I like Avdija, but I don't think there's room for him here anymore, and I don't think you get much from him you're not already getting from Marshall. I guess it's debatable which of those two you'd rather have (Avdija or Marshall), but I'd lean towards the guy who's already here, already fits, and playing better and better (with THIS team) on a consistently upward trajectory. 

I have just as little interest in Thybulle as I did when they offered that contract, and consider Portland matching a notch on the "Mavs got saved from themselves" list.

I don’t really disagree with anything here. Just pointing out that the list is more of a “Nico target” than my personal wish list. Just like Grimes was a Nico target he kept after. I think one of those names will be the TDL target, with Maxi+ as the salary matching needed.

I’m not as high on DFS as some here but think he’d fit the need and is definitely an upgrade to Maxi, so I’d be on board. Avdija is and has been one of my favorites for a while so he’d be my personal top preference. And it’s not an either/or with Naji. I want both!

[KillerLeft]

Avdija is and has been one of my favorites for a while so he’d be my personal top preference. And it’s not an either/or with Naji. I want both!

Sure, but both are on-ball forwards, and it sure seems like they want Thompson on ball quite a bit more than I expected. I think part of this new offensive direction is to expect EVERYONE to have on-ball agency within the flow of the offense, so I can see it, but I still wonder whether there's enough meat on the bone to justify an Avdija acquisition. He's a good defender, but so are Marshall and Thompson...I think he might be the worst of the three in terms of making himself an off-ball threat. 

In terms of who Harrison targets, I think you're underselling part of the equation. I think we have reasonably complete info about many recent Mavs targets, yes, but I also think the natural conclusion is that he liked those players from among the list of who was available at those times. I'm not sure I agree he's pining for the same 11 guys nonstop, regardless of circumstances. Maybe some of them are still available, or available again, but there might be new guys available now who he likes better, and he might have decided he likes some of the guys who are here now more than he used to like those others.

[F Gump]

1 Having said that, I TOTALLY agree with your point regarding how screwed the Mavericks would be if PJW missed significant time due to injury.

2 I don't have any problems whatsoever giving Marshall those backup 4 minutes when the rotation shortens, but I don't think he could replace the 38 minutes of excellent defense they're getting from PJW there by himself.

1 Agree with the 1st point, although that's also true about any of their key players. You cope when there's an injury like that, but lacking that player weakens you -- and there's no way to have a whole backup set of similar-quality players on the back shelf for just in case.

2 I still see no evidence that Marshall is their looming backup 4 for the playoffs. If he was, I believe they would be using him there now in that role, to make sure he is good enough and to hone his skills and fit. And they haven't been. 

Kleber is the backup 4, OMax is next on the depth chart, and in the OKC game when they had neither PJW nor Maxi, Grimes got the start rather than Naji!

Time will tell if they try Naji again as a 4, but it looks to me like he doesn't offer some key abilities that they want from a 4 (rebounding and rim protection) and so they will continue to look elsewhere. It should be obvious that those things are what they want when Kleber is solidly entrenched in the role even though his offense has been abysmal.

And as you've noted, it's not a big minutes role, so they may feel they are adequately stocked already with Kleber (when healthy, with hopes his shooting comes back) plus some development time for OMax to be useful when needed.

[F Gump]

Setting draft capital aside (I think it takes exactly one 1st), how do you think a hypothetical DFS trade would look, outgoing/incoming salaries wise?

I ask because I suspect most are aware of just how disruptive a trade on that level is likely to be this year, but I might be wrong - it might be more doable than I expect. I trust your understanding of the financial realities more than my own.

From a purely financial POV, limited to things I think the Mavs might consider, Maxi-Powell-Exum works, and if it's close to the deadline (when filling a minimum salary slot can cost a bit less), maybe Maxi-Powell-Hardy. 

That's a lot of mid-season change in the depth and team chemistry, but I think they'd get better. Chemistry involves not only whether players get along with each other (DFS would be no problem there), but also how the rotation would work (and that would bring a LOT of impact up and down the lineup).

Before I did any of that, I think I'd ask LAC about DJJ, in case a Maxi-1st package would entice them. I would prefer DJJ over DFS if given the choice.

EDITED TO ADD: Let me add an interesting trade play being proposed by Lauren Gunn, which offers a side move to carve out a bit of added flexibility. She is proposing a trade using Powell-Exum + Philly 2nd (2025) for Kispert (backup offensive wing in WAS), which then adds some room to also get DFS using Maxi-Omax-Hardy, as a combo play. For some, the inclusion of OMax and Hardy makes it now objectionable, I suspect.

It should be noted the idea would have to wait until late January (to have hard cap room to be able to refill the roster), and while she's chasing an upgrade to the back side of the roster, this would leave it even more bare (the new back end of the roster would be Morris plus 3 minimum pickups off the street or from GL or the like). Her thesis is that it's all worth it to have Kispert on your 3rd string, whose calling card is offense (he doesn't do much else of value). An issue I see - beyond the fact he's a one-way player who only shoots 33% on 3s - is he has a pretty big raise looming (next season he starts on a 4 yr 54M extension, basically MLE sized). I'm not sure he's what the Mavs would want, not sure I would like adding Kispert (the contract and lack of defense makes it feel like an "own goal" or like the return of THJ) but since the math works and operates in a different way, worth a mention. It might also spur thinking on possible different targets or side targets.

[KillerLeft]

From a purely financial POV, limited to things I think the Mavs might consider, Maxi-Powell-Exum works, and if it's close to the deadline (when filling a minimum salary slot can cost a bit less), maybe Maxi-Powell-Hardy. 

That's actually not as intrusive as I expected, and I think worth considering. Sending out BOTH of the 3rd centers, the change of pace defensive-spacing option AND the backup who can do a poor man's version of what the first two do on offense.

[mvossman]

From a purely financial POV, limited to things I think the Mavs might consider, Maxi-Powell-Exum works, and if it's close to the deadline (when filling a minimum salary slot can cost a bit less), maybe Maxi-Powell-Hardy. 

That's a lot of mid-season change in the depth and team chemistry, but I think they'd get better. Chemistry involves not only whether players get along with each other (DFS would be no problem there), but also how the rotation would work (and that would bring a LOT of impact up and down the lineup).

Before I did any of that, I think I'd ask LAC about DJJ, in case a Maxi-1st package would entice them. I would prefer DJJ over DFS if given the choice.

EDITED TO ADD: Let me add an interesting trade play being proposed by Lauren Gunn, which offers a side move to carve out a bit of added flexibility. She is proposing a trade using Powell-Exum + Philly 2nd (2025) for Kispert (backup offensive wing in WAS), which then adds some room to also get DFS using Maxi-Omax-Hardy, as a combo play. For some, the inclusion of OMax and Hardy makes it now objectionable, I suspect.

It should be noted the idea would have to wait until late January (to have hard cap room to be able to refill the roster), and while she's chasing an upgrade to the back side of the roster, this would leave it even more bare (the new back end of the roster would be Morris plus 3 minimum pickups off the street or from GL or the like). Her thesis is that it's all worth it to have Kispert on your 3rd string, whose calling card is offense (he doesn't do much else of value). An issue I see - beyond the fact he's a one-way player who only shoots 33% on 3s - is he has a pretty big raise looming (next season he starts on a 4 yr 54M extension, basically MLE sized). I'm not sure he's what the Mavs would want, not sure I would like adding Kispert (the contract and lack of defense makes it feel like an "own goal" or like the return of THJ) but since the math works and operates in a different way, worth a mention. It might also spur thinking on possible different targets or side targets.

Giving up Maxi and Powell means we would need to find a playable 3rd string center for the min.  My guess is that also involves sending out the 25 first.  On the fence on that one.

Zero interest in Kispert, especially on that extension.

[F Gump]

That's actually not as intrusive as I expected, and I think worth considering. Sending out BOTH of the 3rd centers, the change of pace defensive-spacing option AND the backup who do a poor man's version of what the first two do on offense.

Maxi-Powell-Exum vs Maxi-Powell-Hardy, that forces consideration of whether you'd rather have Hardy at 6M in future years, or you'd rather have the 6M to spend elsewhere.

I'd be inclined to let him go. The Nets might see him as an asset (and maybe he is) and I think I'd rather go ahead and cash in. I think cap room and hard cap issues will continue to make contract sizes a factor in their roster-building.

[F Gump]

Giving up Maxi and Powell means we would need to find a playable 3rd string center for the min.  My guess is that also involves sending out the 25 first.  On the fence on that one.

Zero interest in Kispert, especially on that extension.

If you're saying they would send someone a FRP for a 3rd string center, no way.

I do see it as more likely than not that they would feel compelled to get a big body, but I don't see that as a big obstacle. Just as importantly, they couldn't afford the cap hit of a player via trade - all of this presumes the empty roster slots being filled by a free agent whose cost would be below a full season minimum. But finding a center like that shouldn't be a problem, as every spring has its share of players like Drummond, McGee, Pachulia, and so on, a player on a buyout, or another free agent (perhaps from GL or Europe etc).

I'm not saying those players would be as useful as Kleber or Powell. But it's a body. Or the Mavs might even opt to play some small ball in a rotation situation like that, with something like PJW-DFS manning the 4 and 5, since both can rebound and block shots.

[mvossman]

If you're saying they would send someone a FRP for a 3rd string center, no way.

I do see it as more likely than not that they would feel compelled to get a big body, but I don't see that as a big obstacle. Just as importantly, they couldn't afford the cap hit of a player via trade - all of this presumes the empty roster slots being filled by a free agent whose cost would be below a full season minimum. But finding a center like that shouldn't be a problem, as every spring has its share of players like Drummond, McGee, Pachulia, and so on, a player on a buyout, or another free agent (perhaps from GL or Europe etc).

I'm not saying those players would be as useful as Kleber or Powell. But it's a body. Or the Mavs might even opt to play some small ball in a rotation situation like that, with something like PJW-DFS manning the 4 and 5, since both can rebound and block shots.

No, I'm saying that first would be for DFS.  Its a crappy late round first and Maxi is probably a negative asset with his salary, injury history and offensive issues.