Now that the NBA Finals are in the books, teams are officially in offseason mode. But the Dallas Mavericks got started much earlier than they would have liked after missing the playoffs with a 38-44 record.
The 2023 NBA Draft should help the Mavericks improve, as they boast the 10th pick, but there’s always a chance the selection is traded for a proven piece that helps Luka Doncic win now.
Whatever the Mavs decide will directly impact their course in free agency, where they won’t have any money to spend on outside free agents. Plus, Kyrie Irving, Christian Wood, and Dwight Powell are all about to enter unrestricted free agency too, and the Mavericks will have plenty of decisions to make there too.
Early reports suggest the Mavericks will make retaining Irving the priority, but there’s less optimism about getting Wood signed long-term. In fact, NBA insider Marc Stein insists the Mavericks are just ready to move on from the 27-year-old scoring power forward this summer.
It was just last June when the Mavericks acquired Wood from the Houston Rockets, dealing the 26th pick, Boban Marjanovic, Trey Burke, Marquese Chriss, and Sterling Brown in exchange for the talented big.
While Wood still averaged 16.6 points per game, he’d start just 17 games across 67 appearances in Dallas, signifying that he’s not one of the foundational pieces of their core. But that’s ok because a player who has shown he can score in the post or help stretch the floor will have several suitors in free agency outside of Dallas.
Somehow, Wood has been on seven teams since entering the league as an undrafted rookie back in 2015. Now, the 6-foot-10 Long Beach, California native could be ready to join what would be his eighth organization in as many seasons.
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