OKC Thunder trade deadline series: Mavericks hit trade week with a bang

Team Situation:

Seeded 12th in the West with a 23-27 record as of January 31st. Much will depend on whether the Mavericks elect to continue trying to make the postseason or make the decision to try to get back down to ranking fifth or worse for the upcoming draft.

There are other issues such as Harrison Barnes who’ll enter this summer with a decision to make regarding the final season of his contract. With so many elite superstars entering free agency does he take his chances by opting out? Or does he wait one summer to enter the free agent market? That doesn’t mean the Mavericks won’t look to move him regardless. This isn’t an insignificant decision given the size of Barnes salary ($24,107,258 this season and $25,102,512 if he opts into next year).

The likely move by Barnes will be to opt-in, what is unclear is whether the Mavericks will try to move him at the deadline in order to gain assets and free up cap space for this offseason.

Needs:

With the loss of DeAndre Jordan once again the Mavericks are in need of a big man who can help them protect the paint. Sure they added Porzingis but an ideal world would pair the unicorn with a more defensive minded stay at home big.

The other keys will be adding depth particularly players who can function on the wing and provide efficient shooting out to the arc.