The Dallas Mavericks have been very busy this NBA offseason looking to reshape their roster. The biggest move that they made was re-signing Kyrie Irving, giving Luka Doncic a dynamic running mate in the backcourt.
But, after seeing how poorly things went following his acquisition from the Brooklyn Nets ahead of the trade deadline, Dallas knew that its supporting cast needed to be overhauled. They ended up making two selections in the first round of the 2023 NBA Draft, selecting Derek Lively II and Olivier Maxence Prosper, filling two major holes in their rotation.
In free agency, the Mavericks signed veteran Seth Curry and executed a sign-and-trade for Grant Williams of the Boston Celtics that also included the San Antonio Spurs. The Mavericks picked up two second-round picks as part of that deal as well, which they are already looking to use as part of another contract.
According to Tim Cato of The Athletic, the Mavericks renewed conversations with the Detroit Pistons at Summer League. Those talks have been centered around veteran forward Bojan Bogdanovic, who has been at the center of trade talks for over a year.
Even after the Utah Jazz traded him to the Pistons ahead of the 2022-23 season, trade talks continued. He signed an extension with Detroit that only heightened those rumors, as he was close to being traded ahead of the February deadline.
At the time, the asking price of a first-round pick was believed to be too rich, but the Mavericks and Pistons renewed talks don’t include that kind of draft compensation. Instead, the framework of a deal is JaVale McGee and Tim Hardaway Jr. to Detroit in exchange for Bogdanovic and Killian Hayes.
The second-round picks acquired from the Spurs could certainly be used as a sweetener in this deal. But, to take on the unwanted contracts of McGee and Hardaway, the Pistons could demand a first-round pick be included instead.
Bogdanovic would provide the Mavericks with a consistent third scoring option behind Doncic and Irving. He is coming off the best scoring season of his career and would be an excellent fit in Dallas. Hayes would provide them with another ball handler, something they desperately lacked last season.
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