Dallas Mavericks Free Agency: Lemonade out of Lemons
By Reid Hanson
The Dallas Mavericks made lemonade out lemons after striking out on their top free agent options this summer.
Free agency didn’t go exactly as the Dallas Mavericks hoped it would. In typical fashion, the Mavs failed in their pursuit of Plan A. Top targets, Hassan Whiteside and Mike Conley, both chose to stay with their current teams rather than rebuild with the Mavs.
If this song sounds familiar — it should — the Dallas Mavericks have never been able to successfully sign their top target(s) in free agency. Dating back to when the championship team was first dismantled, it’s become a broken record of sorts. But also repeating itself is the front office’s ability to throw together a respectable Plan B.
Harrison Barnes and Andrew Bogut headline the Plan B class of 2016. Together with Seth Curry and A.J. Hammons and a few others, the Mavs have effectively replaced Chandler Parsons and Zaza Pachulia.
We all know they would never do a tear-down and rebuild, this is really the best outcome that could have happened
Thankfully, Deron Williams and Dwight Powell were retained as well so the Dallas Mavericks shouldn’t see any slippage in play next season.
What many are quick to point out is that these moves do little to actually improve the Dallas Mavericks. Frankly, that declaration isn’t that far off.
The Mavs look like another round one road team.
There are only about five or six legitimate contenders in the NBA. Just because the Dallas Mavericks are a playoff team doesn’t mean they are a contender. If the Mavs would have lured Whiteside and Conley, then they would have reached full-fledged contender status. But alas they did not, and not even the most optimistic of fans would look at the Mavs current roster and think that they stood a chance against the NBA’s best.
But that’s lemon talk. Let’s talk lemonade instead…
More from Dallas Mavericks
- Dallas Mavericks Free Agency: 3 Roster Burning Questions
- ‘Dirk Overrated?’ Where does the Mavericks star rank among big men?
- Dallas Mavericks: 1 Possible trade scenario to solve their issues
- 2023 NBA Mock Draft: Where will the Dominoes fall?
- Mavericks new draft odds crucial to team’s future outlook
The Dallas Mavericks were facing a disastrous situation. They missed out on Plan A in typical fashion but Plan B was pretty far from guaranteed. In fact, Plan B only happened because Kevin Durant made the bold (and heavily criticized) move of joining the Golden State Warriors.
If he hadn’t have done so, the Warriors wouldn’t have needed to shed salary.
You may not love the players the Mavs signed but the fact remains, they keep Dallas relevant in the playoff race. Since we all know they would never do a tear-down and rebuild, this is really the best outcome that could have happened in the wake of Plan A’s dissolution.
Did they overpay?
Who cares if they did. Was Mark Cuban going to give the season ticket holders the money that goes unspent under the cap? Of course not.
The economic climate of the NBA is changing. The new TV dollars are having their effect on the free agent market. It’s been hard not to notice that so many B- players are earning A+ dollars. Max contracts going to only superstars are a thing of the past.
In today’s climate, if you can score – you get paid. Nobody really thinks Chandler Parsons is one the NBA’s best. In all fairness, no one thinks that about the man who’s replacing him, Harrison Barnes, either. But as long as the demand outweighs the supply, that’s the current market we live in.
Next: Mavs: Was Wesley Matthews a Mistake?
The Dallas Mavericks took a bad situation and made it a good. Free agency initially served them lemons and the Mavs made lemonade. It’s nothing close to the champagne that the Cavs, Spurs, and Warriors are sipping but it’s still some decent tasting lemonade.