MVN - Most Valuable Network

What to expect from the Mavericks during free agency

As of Sunday evening, the Dallas Mavericks have only seven players on the roster currently under contract: Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Terry, Jason Kidd, Josh Howard, Erick Dampier, Brandon Bass and Jerry Stackhouse. Eddie Jones will likely become the eighth when he picks up his $1.9 million option for next season. Other free agents from the Mavs’ 2007-08 team, such as Devean George, Antoine Wright and J.J. Barea, could become re-signing targets as well.

All of this can’t officially happen until Tuesday when teams will finally be allowed to start talking to players. Who else could possibly be on the Mavericks’ radar? There’s a decent amount of quality free agents, both restricted and unrestricted, but it remains to be seen whether Dallas has enough assets to entice any of the big name ones. Let’s take a look at who’s out there and whether or not the Mavs have a shot at getting him.

The Almost-Impossibles

1. Gilbert Arenas (ETO) - His early termination option allows him to become an unrestricted free agent should he choose to, but everybody’s banking on him staying in Washington.
2. Baron Davis (ETO) - Like Arenas, Davis likely will be staying put. Who would walk away from $17 million?
3. Shawn Marion (ETO) - See above. There’s no way Marion gets any more playing somewhere besides Miami.
4. Elton Brand (ETO) - An intruiging option for many teams, but not the Mavericks who are all set at power forward. He wants a new long term deal, but it’s more likely that he doesn’t get it and stays a Clipper for at least one more season.

The Unlikelys

1. Antawn Jamison - I really like the way Jamison plays and he’s supposedly a very high-character guy, which is always a good thing. He will command more money than the Mavericks are likely willing (or able) to pay, although a sign-and-trade remains an option if the Wizards are dumb enough to want to let him go.
2. Corey Maggette (ETO) - Maggette would make a lot of sense for the Mavericks as far as filling up a hole at the swingman position, and he would also be an excellent compliment to Nowitzki and Kidd. He’s due about $8 million if he doesn’t opt out, and unless he would consider taking a pay cut to come to Dallas for the midlevel exception, the Mavs seem to have no shot of signing him without pulling off a sign-and-trade.
3. Ron Artest (ETO) - Artest is due nearly $8.5 million next season, so to me it seems unlikely that he’d leave. Say what you want about him, but the guy is flat out tough and can still score and play defense with the best of them. If he wants out of Sacramento enough, the Mavs should try to swing a deal to get him. If it doesn’t work out, his expiring contract would make a nice piece of trade bait before next year’s trade deadline.
4. James Posey - I wanted Dallas to go after him last summer, and my feelings haven’t changed a year later considering the impact he made on yet another championship team. Posey has said through his agent that he wants to stay in Boston, but you never know…

The Legit Possibilities

1. Bonzi Wells - Although his production has dipped alongside his playing time over the last couple of years, Wells would make a solid addition to the Mavs’ bench. I’ve heard that he’s not the greatest locker room guy, but he could be worth a gamble with the MLE.
2. Ricky Davis - Clearly on the downslope of his career, Davis has seen better days but is still another swingman that would fill a need and could reasonably be had by the Mavericks. He’s a streaky shooter like Wells, however he’s a few years younger and has the edge in athleticism. Also worth the full MLE.
3. Maurice Evans - He’s bounced around the league quite a bit, but he had his best season yet last year in Orlando and also fills a need at shooting guard. If Wells and Davis are unavailable, Evans is my third-best option at swingman. He can shoot, defend and is only 29, and it may not even take the full MLE to get him.
4. Kurt Thomas - Thomas is getting up there in age, but his low post defense and veteran savvy still make him attractive in the eyes of NBA GM’s. San Antonio may decide to bring him back.
5. DeSagana Diop - As reported earlier by the DMN, the Mavericks are supposedly willing to offer about $5.5 million - the full MLE - to bring Diop back to Dallas. Who knows how much weight that story really carries, but regardless, Diop would be a welcome addition in my book, even for that much money.

Expect more from me as the free agency period gets rolling.

This entry was posted on Sunday, June 29th, 2008 at 10:02 pm and is filed under Dallas Mavericks. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.