The Dallas Mavericks have failed to build a suitable team around Luka Doncic. After achieving just a 38-44 record this NBA season despite receiving MVP-level production from their superstar, there is a lot that must be sorted out. It starts with Kyrie Irving’s impending free agency and the need to build a competent defense fully.
After losing Jalen Brunson for nothing in return, there may not be enough time or assets for the Mavs to work with to turn things around with Doncic. The team went from appearing in the Western Conference Finals last season to failing to qualify for the play-in tournament. If things don’t turn around in a hurry, Doncic might be among the next superstars to ask out.
The Mavs have dug themselves a hole that leads straight to purgatory. They are stuck with plenty of bad contracts, they are likely to lose Christian Wood after trading a first-round pick to acquire him last summer, and they don’t have a second-round pick for the next seven years.
Perhaps worst of all, if they retain their top 10 protected pick, the only additional first-round pick they can trade is a 2027 selection. The reasoning behind their gridlocked circumstances for trading draft picks in such a situation is that the top 10 protection carries through 2025 until the pick conveys to the New York Knicks.
It seems almost inevitable at this point that Doncic will realize he needs to leave the Mavs, given they have a nearly impossible outlook to turn things around in a hurry. Does Doncic want to wait around for a franchise with a meddling owner handling an inexperienced front office facing depleted assets and bad contracts to fix a poorly constructed roster?
According to a former NBA executive that spoke with NBA Analysis Network, teams around the league are already planning a blockbuster trade pursuit of Doncic, and the Jazz are a team to watch.
“There is no telling what the future holds for the Mavs and Luka [Doncic], but teams are swirling like sharks in the water. The Jazz, in particular, plan to pursue Luka if and when he becomes available.”
There are a few NBA teams that have made it a major emphasis to stack up on draft assets, but none have achieved it as quickly as the Jazz. It was a clear goal to achieve based on the trade returns they received in exchange for Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert, along with other veteran players. If Doncic was to ask out, they could construct a major trade package.
Ahead of the 2023 NBA Draft, the Jazz have 15 first-round picks outright, which could reach 16 depending on how the protection plays out with their pick between 2024 and 2026. That would be enough trade ammunition to make a draft-based offer for Doncic.
If the Jazz could retain Lauri Markkanen and Walker Kessler, they’d have quite an intriguing nucleus to build around after adding Doncic into the fold. It would only help if Doncic could recruit impactful talent to join him in Utah, especially if there are enough assets remaining to do so.
The Jazz can still get to work this offseason to add to their stockpile of draft assets if they were to continue their trade maneuvers. It would likely be too early to assume that Doncic would ask out during the upcoming offseason, so keeping assets ready to make such a trade midseason or next summer would be the ideal approach to get it done.
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