Trade & Free Agency 2026/2027

[Smitty]

Didn't you previously explain that Cam can be absorbed into Mavs TPE? If so, Cam + picks, for Caleb, should be a legal trade.

It's not because Mavs are hard capped at A1 and this would take them over, which is not possible. Next league year Cam can't be absorbed into the TPE, so again, not possible.

[F Gump]

It's not because Mavs are hard capped at A1 and this would take them over, which is not possible. Next league year Cam can't be absorbed into the TPE, so again, not possible.

Are you sure? As I recall, they were hard-capped at A2 (not 1) until the AD trade. What did they do after that to create an A1 hard cap?

[DanSchwartzgan]

FWIW, Cam was better post all-star than he was prior to.  He was a strong contributor in +/-.  We could certainly use the shooting...and I don't mind moving up to #26 if that is the deal.

Denver has tried to use cheaper substitutions as a strategy as it has replaced expensive players.  I guess the pitch was that we have to downgrade from Cam to Martin if we are going to keep Watson.

[Smitty]

Are you sure? As I recall, they were hard-capped at A2 (not 1) until the AD trade. What did they do after that to create an A1 hard cap?

Take back more salary in a trade, with that hypothetical…

[Smitty]

FWIW, Cam was better post all-star than he was prior to.  He was a strong contributor in +/-.  We could certainly use the shooting...and I don't mind moving up to #26 if that is the deal.

Denver has tried to use cheaper substitutions as a strategy as it has replaced expensive players.  I guess the pitch was that we have to downgrade from Cam to Martin if we are going to keep Watson.

The stats are useful and encouraging. I like Cam on an expiring next season for sure. I didn’t want to get into the weeds on why Klay for Cam was the only 1:1 legal trade, but I think you’ve caught on by now. The real trade option there is the one I laid out earlier. Can you/we/Mavs stomach Braun is the question…

[DanSchwartzgan]

The stats are useful and encouraging. I like Cam on an expiring next season for sure. I didn’t want to get into the weeds on why Klay for Cam was the only 1:1 legal trade, but I think you’ve caught on by now. The real trade option there is the one I laid out earlier. Can you/we/Mavs stomach Braun is the question…

I did catch on.  I wonder if they could do it as two trades?  Wouldn't Denver get a TPE for sending Cam into the Dallas TPE for 30.  Then we could send Martin into the newly created TPE for 26?  Technically, we aren't taking back more in a trade and the A1 hardcap wouldn't apply?

If I didn't have Christie already, I might think about Braun.  I'm not sure Braun is that much better (or better than the 25 year old version of Christie).


Edit: Trade checker didn't like it. I guess technically it is taking back more salary in a trade. Good to know (if accurate) for planning purposes as the TPE is probably not very useful until July.

[F Gump]

Take back more salary in a trade, with that hypothetical…

Okay. 

Just a slight revision then. Include the small contract of AJ Johnson. 

Martin + Johnson, for Johnson +26

[mrdugdale]

OKC's payroll is too high. The Mavs have a $20 million trade exception. Alex Caruso is 32 and would be a great locker room guy or trade deadline player and he has a salary of $18 million for the next three years

Option 1: Mavs absorb his full contract for the 12th and 17th pick this year.

Option 2: Mavs absorb his full contract for the 12th or 17th pick and the Mavs 2028 pick.

[Scott41theMavs]

OKC's payroll is too high. The Mavs have a $20 million trade exception. Alex Caruso is 32 and would be a great locker room guy or trade deadline player and he has a salary of $18 million for the next three years

Option 1: Mavs absorb his full contract for the 12th and 17th pick this year.

Option 2: Mavs absorb his full contract for the 12th or 17th pick and the Mavs 2028 pick.

Option 3: Presti does a Presti and says that if the Mavs want Caruso in their TE, they have to give *him* a pick for it.

[cow]

Option 4:  Presti realizes Caruso is too important to the current iteration of this team and figures out a way to keep him.

[windjc]

Presti has no leverage. So to win any transaction he has to engage with a beta. Thats not us anymore now that cheeseD*ck Cuban is gone.

[SkenfromLMF]

It must be VERY expensive for Dallas to take on enough salary to go back into the repeater window before July 1.

I doubt OKC is willing to pay that price, and I am hopeful that Dallas isn’t underselling a reset of the clock for repeater status. So my initial reaction to the return on the proposed OKC options was “they’ll never pay that” my secondary reaction from Dallas’ perspective was it “should never be much cheaper than that.”

I see next to no way to make that deal prior to the draft. After July 1st does the price diminish for OKC??

That being said, IF the deal is pre-July 1st:
salary from OKC, 12, 17, & 37, Dallas gets the option on the pick swap in 28.
for
30 & 48

[michaeltex]

Just to reset prior to FA and the draft...

For next season, according to BR, DAL currently has 8 guaranteed contracts ($'s are approximate):

Irving               $39.5M
Thompson        $17.5M
Gafford             $17.3M
Washington       $19.8M
Flagg                $14.5M
Martin               $10.0M
Marshall            $9.4M
Christie             $8.3M

2 TO's to decide on:

Lively                $7.2M
Johnson            $3.2M (BR has him as a TO this year, but I'm not sure that is correct)

2 Dead Money:

McGee               $2.2M
Prosper              $1.0M

Lively's TO will be exercised, I'd just let Johnson walk if it really is a TO. If they do that the current 9 guaranteed slots + 2 Dead money payroll  is $146.7. Add n another $9M for #9 and #30 and you get to $155.7M, $158.9 if you have to include Johnson. Adding 2 picks + Johnson gets you to 12 contracts. I have not clue how/if TE's affect these numbers.

For next season, the projected cap targets are:

• Salary Cap: $165 million
  
• Salary Floor: $149 million
  
• Luxury Tax Level: $201 million
  
• First Apron: $209million
  
• Second Apron: $222 million 
  

Key Exceptions and Spending Power

• Non-Taxpayer MLE: $15.049 million
  
• Taxpayer MLE: ~$6.1 million
  
• Bi-Annual Exception: $5.478 million
  

What about the team FA's from last year?
Williams - Fun experiment whose time has passed?
Middleton - Solid bench vet at the right price?
Bagley - Late bloomer finally finding his comfort zone but maybe too pricey now?
Cisse - Insurance against Lively/Gafford injuries?
Nembhard - is he worth more than the minimum right now?
Poulakidas - Did he show enough to warrant another look, maybe another 2-way?

A lot of decisions for the new MBT to make over the next month. Should get interesting.

[Smitty]

Okay. 

Just a slight revision then. Include the small contract of AJ Johnson. 

Martin + Johnson, for Johnson +26

I didn't plan to get into the weeds on the different iterations of the Cam into TPE options, but no, based on my math this would not work either. The Mavs are $8.1M below A1. The spread with Cam and Martin+Johnson is +$8.4M to the Mavs, which exceeds the hardcap that would be in place by taking in more salary in a trade. 

The whole point of my proposal with Cam+Braun+P.26 for Klay+Martin+TPE was that it saved the Nuggets ~$20M next year, so that they could pay Watson. Which is the whole point for them... 

Making the trade for Cam+Braun now is unique in the fact that it keeps both the Mavs and Nuggets below the Tax Line THIS league year. The Mavs have $1.3M in space below it, the Nuggets $605K. Even though Braun counts as $21.6M for trade matching purposes, his cap number would be unchanged ($4.9M), so the difference in Cam+Braun and Klay+Martin is +$281K to the Nuggets. 

Using the TPE for Cam now, allows for the Mavs to trade match the PPP contract of Braun this league year.

So, in recap, nearly no cost difference in the cap this league year and $20M in savings for the Nuggets next season.


It's a big contract to take on for the Mavs. They would need to actually like Braun as a buy-low candidate. Pick 26 isn't worth the trouble if you only view him as a "bad contract".

[mvossman]

It must be VERY expensive for Dallas to take on enough salary to go back into the repeater window before July 1.

I doubt OKC is willing to pay that price, and I am hopeful that Dallas isn’t underselling a reset of the clock for repeater status. So my initial reaction to the return on the proposed OKC options was “they’ll never pay that” my secondary reaction from Dallas’ perspective was it “should never be much cheaper than that.”

I see next to no way to make that deal prior to the draft. After July 1st does the price diminish for OKC??

That being said, IF the deal is pre-July 1st:
salary from OKC, 12, 17, & 37, Dallas gets the option on the pick swap in 28.
for
30 & 48

There is no chance for something like this.  Presti is not going to have to pay this premium.  He has actual good players to dump and a ton of options.  He will find something better than this somewhere.

[RasheedsBigWhiteSpot]

I didn't plan to get into the weeds on the different iterations of the Cam into TPE options, but no, based on my math this would not work either. The Mavs are $8.1M below A1. The spread with Cam and Martin+Johnson is +$8.4M to the Mavs, which exceeds the hardcap that would be in place by taking in more salary in a trade. 

The whole point of my proposal with Cam+Braun+P.26 for Klay+Martin+TPE was that it saved the Nuggets ~$20M next year, so that they could pay Watson. Which is the whole point for them... 

Making the trade for Cam+Braun now is unique in the fact that it keeps both the Mavs and Nuggets below the Tax Line THIS league year. The Mavs have $1.3M in space below it, the Nuggets $605K. Even though Braun counts as $21.6M for trade matching purposes, his cap number would be unchanged ($4.9M), so the difference in Cam+Braun and Klay+Martin is +$281K to the Nuggets. 

Using the TPE for Cam now, allows for the Mavs to trade match the PPP contract of Braun this league year.

So, in recap, nearly no cost difference in the cap this league year and $20M in savings for the Nuggets next season.


It's a big contract to take on for the Mavs. They would need to actually like Braun as a buy-low candidate. Pick 26 isn't worth the trouble if you only view him as a "bad contract".

The Nuggets would have to add more than #26 to take on Braun. I'd put him in the top 10 worst contracts in the league because it's not only way above his value (he should be getting MLE money), but it's longterm. If he got here and didn't work out, that would be an albatross. 

I'm much more interested in Zeke Nnaji + #26 for #48.

[RoyTarpleysGhost]

A lot of these [other team gives us good draft picks to dump legit rotation players] trades seem like wishful thinking, as if the Mavs were the only possible trade partner for that team to shed salary.

[DanSchwartzgan]

I didn't plan to get into the weeds on the different iterations of the Cam into TPE options, but no, based on my math this would not work either. The Mavs are $8.1M below A1. The spread with Cam and Martin+Johnson is +$8.4M to the Mavs, which exceeds the hardcap that would be in place by taking in more salary in a trade. 
 

I love all the work on this.  I don't have the time or ability right now to check the math, but since this is an Apron question and not a tax or cap question, I wonder if you've included bonuses.  Martin has a $1.3mm bonus and Cam has an even larger one if memory serves.

[Smitty]

Just to reset prior to FA and the draft...

For next season, according to BR, DAL currently has 8 guaranteed contracts ($'s are approximate):

Irving               $39.5M
Thompson        $17.5M
Gafford             $17.3M
Washington       $19.8M
Flagg                $14.5M
Martin               $10.0M
Marshall            $9.4M
Christie             $8.3M

2 TO's to decide on:

Lively                $7.2M
Johnson            $3.2M (BR has him as a TO this year, but I'm not sure that is correct)

2 Dead Money:

McGee               $2.2M
Prosper              $1.0M

Lively's TO will be exercised, I'd just let Johnson walk if it really is a TO. If they do that the current 9 guaranteed slots + 2 Dead money payroll  is $146.7. Add n another $9M for #9 and #30 and you get to $155.7M, $158.9 if you have to include Johnson. Adding 2 picks + Johnson gets you to 12 contracts. I have not clue how/if TE's affect these numbers.

Lively's Club Option was exercised 10/31/25. Johnson's was exercised 10/29/25. Johnson has another TO for 27-28, with a deadline of 10/31/26. Safe to say, that will not be exercised.

[Smitty]

I love all the work on this.  I don't have the time or ability right now to check the math, but since this is an Apron question and not a tax or cap question, I wonder if you've included bonuses.  Martin has a $1.3mm bonus and Cam has an even larger one if memory serves.

I did not, but that would make it worse. Cam's ULTBE is $4.1M. So, any hardcap deals where the Mavs take on more salary this league year is difficult. That's why Klay is the only 1:1 that works there. There are several 2:1 deals that work though, but at that point you're basically trade matching and the TPE is pointless and provides no savings to the Nuggets next year, which again is the whole point they're looking to trade Cam and/or Braun.