The Mavericks are staring at a real frontcourt decision after Moussa Cissé signed a two-year offer sheet with the reigning-champion Knicks on Saturday, according to The Stein Line’s Jake Fischer.
Dallas now has until Monday to decide whether to match. The financial terms of the deal still haven’t been disclosed, but the clock is clearly ticking.
Cissé, 23, would give New York the kind of young, athletic rim protector it has been targeting since Mitchell Robinson left for the rival Boston Celtics. Fischer reported the Knicks also checked in on the New Orleans Pelicans’ Yves Missi and the Charlotte Hornets’ Moussa Diabaté before landing on Cissé.
For Dallas, the issue is simple: Cissé matters, but so does preserving enough depth in the middle. That tension has been building since the summer, especially after Marvin Bagley III signed with the Denver Nuggets.
Cissé’s path to this point has been a winding one. He went undrafted in 2025, then joined the Mavericks on a two-way deal on October 18. From there, he carved out a role in his rookie season, appearing in 38 games with one start and logging 13.9 minutes per night.
He also spent time with the Texas Legends, and that’s where his defensive impact showed up even louder. In the G-League, Cissé averaged 2.1 blocks and 0.7 steals per game.
That production is part of why Dallas has reason to think hard before letting him go. As Grant Afseth wrote on July 2, the Mavericks’ interior depth already has questions, with Daniel Gafford and P.J.
Washington still around, Dereck Lively II recovering from foot surgery, and Dwight Powell unsigned and uncertain to return. Dallas also added Morez Johnson Jr. with the ninth overall pick in this year’s NBA Draft and traded for Santi Aldama from the Memphis Grizzlies, but neither offers the same paint presence Cissé does at center.
As Afseth put it, “Cissé is the most cost-effective and sensible option to cover those minutes.”
If Dallas declines to match, the Knicks would add another name to a long list of centers with stops in both cities, joining Tyson Chandler, Samuel Dalembert, Nerlens Noel, Amar'e Stoudemire and Kristaps Porzingis.
In Other News...
Hawks Just Made A Stunning Decision On A Former No. 1 Pick
Atlantas latest move in a three-team deal sent a ripple through the league, with the Hawks, Mavericks and Thunder all getting something they could point to as a reason to make the swap. Dallas was part of the shuffle, Atlanta added Lu Dort, Oklahoma City picked up three second-round draft picks, and Ryan Nembhard also moved from the Mavericks to the Hawks as the transaction took shape.
For Dallas, the bigger question now is how this kind of deal fits the broader plan around Cooper Flagg and the rest of the roster. The appeal is obvious enough: adding a long, mobile wing who can move without the ball, cut into space and give a lineup another layer of versatility is the sort of move front offices make when they are trying to build around a young centerpiece, even if the full impact of the trade will take time to sort out. [Read more 🡒]
Mavericks May Be Ready To Move A Major Frontcourt Piece
Dallas frontcourt logjam has become one of the more interesting roster questions around the team this summer, with the club continuing to stockpile size and leaving little doubt that it is willing to keep reshaping the group. After matching a rivals bid for Moussa Ciss, the Mavericks now have multiple big men in the mix, including Santi Aldama and Dereck Lively II, and that depth has created a surplus that could force a difficult decision.
The latest chatter suggests Dallas is at least listening on veteran rim protection help, and the possibility of a move has only grown as the team stays active in trade conversations. Gaffords place in the rotation is no longer as settled as it once looked, and with the Mavericks still working through how to balance all that frontcourt investment, the next move could say a lot about which pieces they view as essential and which ones are available to be moved. [Read more 🡒]
Hawks Just Made A Win-Now Wing Move Fans Will Debate
A three-team deal on the days transaction wire sent Luguentz Dort to Atlanta, but the ripple effects reached Dallas too, where the Mavericks were part of a move that also involved Oklahoma City and Chicago. The Thunder trimmed their luxury-tax bill and picked up three second-rounders plus a trade exception, while the Hawks added a perimeter defender in Dort and Dallas reworked its wing depth as part of the same exchange.
For the Mavericks, the intrigue is less about the mechanics than the fit and the price. Dallas is giving up Ryan Nembhard and a second-round pick to bring in Zaccharie Risacher, using a traded player exception to absorb his contract, and the debate now shifts to what that means for a roster trying to balance immediate help with long-term upside. Risachers profile is still taking shape, and his limited playoff run in Atlanta only adds to the uncertainty around how quickly he can matter in a bigger role. [Read more 🡒]