THE CRUCIFIX: Cato: Wood isn't thrilled w/ his role...Will depart in the summer

[ItsGoTime]

Tough to know what's best in the Wood situation. 

He's very talented. The best version of him is worth quite a bit. And, he of course wants quite a bit, so my guess is that he's going to play really hard (and well, most of the time) here this season. We're all going to grow to like him a lot, I'd bet. 

But, his history says he doesn't work hard consistently. Maybe he's turned a corner, and the teams in Detroit and Houston just weren't operating at a high enough level for it to matter, and that's why he slacked off at times, missing practices, etc. Or, maybe that's just who he is, and the second he gets extended, re-signed, whatever, he's immediately going to relax and return to an underwhelming state.

If it's the latter, extending him right away might be the worst possible choice. 

Then again, if they let him walk for nothing, Brunson-style, I'll have to be miserable for another entire summer. I don't know how many of those I have left in me as a Mavs fan. 

Is it possible that the best, safest course of action is to trade him at the deadline? Maybe he's the prize you mix in with Powell's contract to get an established guy?

So, this is also part of the JB conundrum. At the TDL, either it was made known that NYK were who was gonna sign him in the offseason or FOs figured it out. No one wanted him (if they were shopping him, knowing he was going to leave) and NYK weren’t going to pay Dallas for an asset they were pretty confident they would get in a few months.


I see that type scenario playing out yet again. I think offensively CW is for sure going to be worth $17.5M going into the future even if there are motivation/motor issues. Being the offensive force he is and able to play the C or PF spot makes him pretty valuable for trade if we don’t want to deal with the other issues.

On top of all that. If he does have motivation issues and just wants a payday, paying him next offseason based on his motivated play this year might turn out just like the KP issue (only he actually fits offensively, just not defensively).

Also, it will be extremely hard for even people close to the situation to tell if he is only playing for a payday. This is why extending him asap, if he actually would take the max extension, is the best option.