The Mavericks have finally made their first move of the new league year, and it comes with a clear purpose. Dallas is sending AJ Johnson, a protected 2030 first-round pick and two second-round picks to the Memphis Grizzlies in exchange for Santi Aldama and the draft rights to Tarik Biberovic, according to ESPN's Shams Charania.
For a team that went quiet through the first two days of free agency, this is the kind of swing that speaks to a very specific need. Dallas has been hunting for frontcourt shooting for years, and Aldama arrives as a rare solution: a 7-footer who can stretch the floor and make life easier for everyone else around him.
That’s been the missing piece in Dallas for a while. Maxi Kleber was the closest thing the Mavericks had to a stretch big, but injuries kept him from becoming a dependable answer, and he was later dealt to the Los Angeles Lakers as part of the Luka Doncic trade. Marvin Bagley III gave them a short-term boost in that area last season, though it doesn’t appear he’ll be back.
Aldama gives the Mavericks a very different kind of option. Last season in Memphis, he shot 35 percent from three on 4.7 attempts per game and averaged 14.0 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 0.9 steals, and 0.7 blocks while hitting 47.9 percent from the field. It was a career-best scoring year, and now he gets a new opportunity in Dallas after five seasons with the Grizzlies.
The fit makes sense on paper right away. Aldama can play next to Dereck Lively II and Daniel Gafford, and he also gives the Mavericks a small-ball five look when they want it. Beyond the shot-making, he brings passing and some on-ball creation, which adds another layer to an offensive game that has been better than many people give him credit for.
Dallas still has work to do as it builds around Cooper Flagg, but this is a strong opening move. The Mavericks shot 34.4 percent from three last season as a team, and Aldama should help change that fast.
In Other News...
Mavericks Fans Just Got Another Sign This Roster Reset Is Real
The jersey numbers are changing again for two of the Mavericks newer faces, another small but noticeable sign that the roster has started to feel different from the one fans have been watching. According to a team spokesperson and reporting from The Dallas Morning News, Max Christie and Naji Marshall will both switch numbers for the 2026-27 season, with Christie moving from No. 00 to No. 0 and Marshall going from No. 13 to No. 3.
For a team in the middle of a reset, even something as simple as a number change can carry a little extra meaning because it signals how quickly the identity around the roster is shifting. No. 0 was previously worn by Dante Exum, and No. 3 was once Anthony Davis number, so the switches also add another layer to the sense that Dallas is moving into a new era one detail at a time. [Read more 🡒]
Mavericks Just Lost Their Cleanest Daniel Gafford Trade Path
The Mavericks were already working through a tricky Daniel Gafford trade market, and one of the cleaner avenues appears to have narrowed even further. Los Angeles move to upgrade its center group with Walker Kessler and Utahs decision to sign Jaxson Hayes to a two-year deal both reshape the board, but the latter is the one Dallas has to watch most closely because it affects the Jazz, a team that had looked like a plausible fit for Gaffords skill set.
Utah now plans to pair Hayes with Jusuf Nurkic, which makes the Jazz a far less obvious destination in any Gafford pursuit. For Dallas, that means the front office has to keep looking for another team willing to take on a center with value, while also sorting through its own roster construction after adding Morez Johnson Jr. in the draft and trading for Santi Aldama. [Read more 🡒]