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“When it comes to money, I’m a buyer. I’m always a buyer. Always,” Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban recently told us on our Mavs Step Back podcast.
“(If) the teams want to take the salary, if it puts us above, yes. People forget, now a salary of $ 100 million is not as important as it used to be, but I had $ 100 million – plus salaries and taxes. Deluxe came out of the wazoo in the early 2000s, and people thought it was crazy.
I just want to win, so I’m willing to do the same again. “
With the Mavs coming off an inspiring effort in their playoff series against the Los Angeles Clippers, you have to believe that Cuban is referring to those words heading into this offseason. If 21-year-old Luka Doncic wasn’t already in the NBA’s top-five conversations before the playoffs began, he certainly is now after nearly averaging a 30-point triple-double against one of the best defensive teams. in the league for six games. , while also delivering the deciding moment of the postseason with a game-winning buzzer in Game 4.
The problem is, as great as Doncic is, he just needs a little more consistent help around him, even with a healthy Kristaps Porzingis, for the Mavs to become more than just a really fun playoff team.
Dallas needs a true third option that is capable of hitting more of the open stares Doncic creates at a more steady pace. When the Mavs’ historically great offense stalls from time to time at the end of close games, they need a third player who is capable of getting them a big bucket down the stretch to take some of the scoring burden off them. by Doncic.
As we remind you every offseason and trade deadline, it’s DallasBasketball.com tradition to brainstorm and piece together potential moves the Mavs could make in the future. These aren’t always predictions or even news “scoops” … but rather comprehensive examinations of Dallas’ options based on what the NBA landscape looks like at the time.
Today’s “close examination” involves Sacramento Kings sniper Buddy Hield.
Why it makes sense to the Mavs
As mentioned above, the Mavs could really use another consistent scorer to ease some of the late-game burden that falls on Doncic’s shoulders. Hield has averaged 20 points per game in his past two seasons in Sacramento, while he has shot 41 percent on nearly nine 3-point attempts per game. Hield has also averaged five rebounds and three assists per game over the past two seasons.
We’ll suggest that Hield could probably use a change of scenery at this point … and would be a perfect fit alongside Doncic on the offensive side of the court.
As good as Tim Hardaway Jr. was for the Mavs this season, his career production and efficiency is not as impressive as Hield’s. Hardaway Jr. shot nearly 40 percent from beyond the arc in the regular season this year, but that percentage dropped to his career average of 35 percent in the postseason.
Still, the Mavs love Hardaway Jr. and, as Cuban told us in February, there is a mutual interest in him staying for a long time.
“THJ has become an elite shooter (this season). It makes us so much better,” Cuban said. “Obviously, we can watch him for a long time, and I know he wants to stay. I’d be lying if (I said) I thought it would be that good.”
That said, plans can change when there is an opportunity to upgrade the squad. Obviously, the Mavs have to figure out if Hardaway Jr. will go for the final year of his contract this offseason before they can even consider trading him, and maybe he ends up not being part of the hypothetical trade regardless.
But from a financial and positional standpoint, it would make more sense to include it in this business scenario.
Why it makes sense to kings
Vlade Divac is no longer making the decisions in Sacramento, having resigned as general manager of the Kings a few weeks ago. The fact that the Kings have the longest postseason drought in the league, now 14 years old and counting, combined with Divac’s decision to pass Doncic in the 2018 NBA Draft when Sacramento had the No. 2 pick was too much for him.
Before Divac resigned, he handed over a four-year, $ 85 million contract to former Maverick Harrison Barnes, as well as a four-year, $ 96 million extension to Hield, a player who, according to Jason Anderson of the Sacramento Bee, does not appear to be happy with his current role with the Kings going forward.
As of late January, Kings head coach Luke Walton, whose job is reportedly safe heading into next season, decided to take Hield off the bench rather than start him. Hield’s production stayed about the same from the bench, and his 3-point percentage was a staggering 45 percent during that time, but it’s been reported that he sees himself as a headline going forward, and we would have to agree with that. .
With reports the Kings are making a “top priority in the offseason” of re-signing restricted free agent Bogdan Bogdanovic – the guy who replaced Hield in the starting lineup, it’s realistic to think that Hield might request a trade. And with the new management in charge, the management that didn’t make the decision to extend Hield in the first place, they might be open to the idea of letting Hield go if it avoids a problem and the franchise also receives some assets in the process. .
What the potential trade might look like
If Hardaway Jr. decides to go for his $ 19 million player option, Dallas could theoretically send his expiring contract, a filler player (perhaps Delon Wright or Justin Jackson) and the 31st pick in the draft from this year to Sacramento. for Hield, whose four-year extension will begin this offseason. There are a couple of other ways to mix and match the pieces, but that’s probably the most realistic scenario in our opinion.
Some will argue that the offer is not enough for the Kings to consider, given that Hield is one of the league’s most efficient high-volume three-point shooters, but his current situation with Walton, who seems determined to bring him in from the bank, along with the idea that the new Sacramento management probably doesn’t want to start a conflict, gives this one a chance.
And that’s where we would start the bidding.
Hield is not our first choice on who we want the Mavs to go after this offseason, and he may not even be our second or third choice, but he’s a realistic choice that would definitely be an upgrade on the roster, and Dallas should be on top. both of the situation. .
Also, if the Mavs made this move, they would probably have to add another defensive piece in free agency, perhaps a meeting with former Maverick Jae Crowder, as an example.
Stay tuned to DallasBasketball.com in the weeks and months leading up to the draft as we break down the other names we have on our Mavs offseason roster.
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