Mavericks Trade Proposal Flips Christian Wood for ‘Lethal’ Luka Doncic Co-Star

Let’s put this Dallas Mavericks season into perspective. This time last year, Dallas was 15-15, only a half-game better than this year’s 15-16 squad. Luka Doncic entered the season as the favorite to win MVP, but questions about his fitness forced him out of that conversation until after the All-Star Break. This season, Doncic is in the thick of a crowded MVP race that includes Jayson Tatum and Giannis Antetkoumpo. The Phoenix Suns looked like the toast of the Western Conference, a virtually invincible (at least appearing) opponent.

This time last year, a Western Conference Finals run looked out of the question for Dallas. But things loosened up after the team traded away Kristaps Porzingis, the Mavs caught fire, and the rest is history.

And according to Michael Mulford of si.com, the Mavs should consider trading another big man away before this season’s deadline. Here’s how Mulford’s trade would shake out:

Mavericks Receive: Jae Crowder and DeAndre Ayton

Suns Receive: Christian Wood, Dwight Powell, Reggie Bullock, and two first-round picks

“Ayton would give the Mavs their big man and defensive anchor of the future whose timeline matches up with Doncic. The pick-and-roll between the two would be a lethal threat as Doncic can make any big man a viable option as a roll man.”

The trade not only lands Dallas a star in Ayton to pair with Doncic but also lands them Crowder, a team they’ve been linked to recently.

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The Mavericks ‘Have Talked’ About Bringing Back Crowder

According to Heavy Sports’ Sean Deveney, Dallas has explored a deal to reunite disgruntled Suns forward Jae Crowder with the Mavs.

“[The Mavericks] have talked about Jae Crowder, bringing him back,” a Western Conference exec told Deveney. “That is the kind of player they’re looking at but there is not much there that Phoenix would want—the Suns want someone who is going to help them now. Dallas doesn’t have that unless they were to make it a bigger deal.”

Crowder has been looking for a way out of the desert since the preseason.

But if the Mavericks will likely face stiff competition for Crowder. According to Shams Charania, the Milwaukee Bucks have been in talks with Phoenix. The Golden State Warriors and Atlanta Hawks are also lurking. The Bucks and Warriors represent two of the smartest front offices, though — Dallas would be wise to follow their leads.

But the unquestioned prize of the trade would be adding Ayton, who could form one of the league’s most potent pick-and-roll combos with Luka Doncic.

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DeAndre Ayton Could Turbocharge Mavericks’ Season

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: (insert center here) would form a mouth-watering partnership with Luka Doncic. The Mavs have searched high and low for that elusive big man, with deals for Kristaps Porzingis, JaVale McGee, and Christian Wood highlighting the bunch.

But (not to sound like the writer who cried center) Ayton would be the REAL DEAL. Right now, Dwight Powell runs the most pick-and-rolls in the league (min. 20 games played), resulting in just 2.5 points. Ayton, on the other hand, runs the eighth-most PnRs but is notching 4.5 points, on par with the Heat’s Bam Adebayo.

And if you think Crowder is the only disgruntled Suns player, guess again. During the Suns’ loss to the Sacramento Kings earlier this week, Ayton was spotted in a heated argument with head coach Monty Williams.

Given Josh Green‘s stronger play of late and Tim Hardaway, Jr. finally discovering his shooting stroke, the Mavs can afford to let go of Reggie Bullock’s inconsistent scoring. Ditto for Wood; it would be a tough pill to swallow, given that he’s arguably been Dallas’ second-best player this season. But if Ayton is on the table, the Mavs should sign the former No. 1 overall pick and not look back.

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