The Mavericks have a roster crunch on their hands, and the clock is already ticking toward opening night.
Dallas is sitting at 16 players, which means one move has to come before the regular season begins. Sunday’s trade for former first overall pick Zaccharie Risacher only made the frontcourt traffic worse, even if the gamble itself makes sense. The Mavs were already crowded up front, and adding another wing only tightens the squeeze.
The bigger issue, though, is what Dallas still doesn’t have: enough backcourt help. Ryan Nembhard went out in the Risacher deal, and while he didn’t look like a major rotation piece, his departure only sharpens the need.
Kyrie Irving is the lone established point guard in the mix. Sergio De Larrea is a rookie.
Marcus Sasser still has to prove he belongs in an NBA rotation.
At shooting guard, the picture isn’t much cleaner. Klay Thompson could be gone at any moment, Max Christie profiles more like a strong bench option, and Tarik Biberovic remains an unknown.
Ideally, Dallas would find someone who can handle either guard spot without locking the team into a long-term deal. The catch is that any trade also has to be a 2-for-1 just to get the roster down to 15.
One three-team idea fits those constraints, even if it’s not exactly a glamorous one.
In that scenario, the Mavericks would get Jordan Poole plus three second-round picks - a 2027 second-rounder via Houston from New Orleans, a 2030 second-rounder from New Orleans, and a 2031 second-rounder via Toronto from New Orleans. The Heat would land Klay Thompson. The Pelicans would receive Daniel Gafford, Nikola Jovic, and a 2029 first-round pick swap from Miami.
Poole is the kind of name that will turn people off fast, and for good reason. He’s not a good player, and his salary is hefty.
But he’s also in the final year of his contract, worth just over $34 million, which makes him a movable expiring deal. Dallas could let that money come off the books or use it as trade bait at the deadline.
The price for that flexibility would be shipping out Thompson to Miami and Gafford to New Orleans. Gafford has been in constant trade rumors, and the Pelicans may not need a center in the abstract, but there’s uncertainty around Derik Queen and the Knicks have reportedly been sniffing around Yves Missi. That opens the door for New Orleans to move Missi and bring in Gafford, who would be a clear upgrade.
For Dallas, the appeal is straightforward: Gafford is the better player and he’s on the cheaper contract, while Poole’s deal could still be useful even if the Mavericks don’t plan to keep him. The three second-round picks would also help replenish a cupboard that took a hit when Dallas sent away its last real second-rounder in the Risacher trade.
The toughest sell in the deal would be getting New Orleans to take Nikola Jovic’s contract. But if there’s a team that might be willing to roll the dice on a questionable decision, the source of this idea points to Joe Dumars.
The Heat, meanwhile, would be taking on Thompson’s contract, and that means sending out Jovic as part of the return. Jovic is entering the first year of a four-year, $62 million extension, but he has never played more than 50 games in a season. Miami would be giving up a young player under contract, while also getting a 2029 first-round pick swap in case the Heat slide.
It’s not a flashy solution. It doesn’t scream headline-grabber. But it would clear some of Dallas’ logjam, bring in future assets, move off future salary, and give the Mavericks a guard who can at least fill a backcourt role.
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Los Angeles sent a heavy package of future draft assets to Utah for Kessler, and part of the internal logic was simple: the Lakers felt more comfortable paying that kind of cost because of what they did not have to surrender in the Doni trade. It is another reminder that Dallas did not just move on from a franchise star in February, it also helped shape the way other teams are now spending, and Kessler may end up as one more player whose value is viewed through the lens of what Doni can unlock around him. [Read more 🡒]