Dallas Mavericks: Don’t re-sign Christian Wood to extension (Debate Part 1)
By Reid Hanson
When the Dallas Mavericks acquired Christian Wood from the Houston Rockets this past summer they upgraded their roster tremendously. Talent-wise, the move was a no-brainer.
The package, headlined by Trey Burke and Boban Marjanovic, upgraded the Rockets locker room, but Wood upgraded the Mavs talent.
Houston had begun a rebuilding project and wanted to to unload pieces that didn’t fit into their vision. They wanted a strong culture more than some short-term buckets so they gifted the Dallas Mavericks Christian Wood.
Christian Wood has become a big part of the Dallas Mavericks this season but re-signing him might be too risky.
Now that the dust has settled from the trade, the Dallas Mavericks are free to re-sign their 6-foot-11 big man. The 27-year-old is averaging 17.8 points and 7.9 rebounds and has carved out an integral role alongside Luka Doncic.
He’s unquestionably been the biggest offseason upgrade on the Mavs and someone who has helped alleviate the loss of Jalen Brunson and the underwhelming performance of JaVale McGee.
In Dallas, Wood has been a good teammate, and engaged defender, and a cohesive piece next to Luka. He’s been good to the media and coaches alike.
So what’s the problem?
The Tim Hardaway, Dwight Powell, and JaVale McGee contracts are bad enough. Does anyone want to add another immoveable contract to the Mavs’ books?
The reason Wood came to Dallas for peanuts is his reputation. Wood has played on seven teams in seven years. That’s a red flag to anyone, considering the numbers he puts up on the daily. Tim Cato at The Athletic recently spoke on the matter, saying the general sentiment from NBA executives is not a favorable one of Wood. Fair or not, Wood has a reputation, and that could mean two things:
- It’s only a matter of time before he lives up to his reputation (in a bad way)
- or that he’s untradeable because teams have a bad impression of him
The concern is if the Dallas Mavericks do offer Wood a multiyear extension and things do not work out, they will be stuck with him because no one wants to take on a player with a bad reputation. The Tim Hardaway, Dwight Powell, and JaVale McGee contracts are bad enough. Does anyone want to add another immoveable contract to the Mavs’ books?
The Mavs have so much money tied up in bad deals, they’re already going to struggle to sign legit star players to pair alongside Luka.
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Could Christian Wood finally sustain his performance and remake his reputation? Sure! He seems like a good player and an overall good guy here in Dallas. But he comes with risk and the Mavs have already gambled and lost on some of their recent signings, they can’t afford to do it again.
Must Read. The Mavs are coming for that No. 1 spot. light
In Part 2 we will make the argument FOR the Dallas Mavericks re-signing Christian Wood. Read them both and decide. Be sure to leave comments stating your case…